Bad dealers.
bot69
Posts: 2 ✭
I collect ancient coins, mostly Roman, and while looking through a seller on ebays collection of items for sale I came upon some coins listed as silver and Greek that are clearly neither and not coins but Roman brothel tokens. I messaged the seller and informed him that the ancient Greeks never put men and women engaged in sexual acts on coins and certainly not with Roman numerals on the reverse. In reply, the seller told me he is the expert and knows more than I do so I let it go. They are obviously fake Roman brothel tokens because they are very rare and he was taken in by someone and wants to get rid of them but if he is being dishonest I can't understand why he isn't just selling them as what they really are. If they were genuine they would be worth at least a grand apiece. I just thought I should mention it in case any novices out there come across this seller. I am not sure if he could sue me or else I would have printed his name and that of his establishment.
Comments
Ebay, just like the world at large, is full of scammers and jerks. But why do people feel like they need to be the world's policemen? Just chuckle, move on, and let it go. None of us is going to change the world by policing ebay. Besides, ebay is a rich corporation, and I'm not going to give them free professional services. They could pay people to patrol for fakes if they really wanted to control it. The fact that they don't tells me all I need to know.
You should post the links to those auctions and welcome to the forum! What are some of your favorite Romans in your collection?
8 Reales Madness Collection
Our general advice for ancients is to stay away from eBay, especially if you're new to ancients. There are good sellers on eBay, but there are also a lot of people selling fakes, illegally looted coins, over-hyped slugs and genuine-but-badly-mis-identified coins. And it's nigh on impossible for beginners to tell the difference between the true blue dealers and the bogus ones. The probability of hitting a "good guy" at random on eBay these days is depressingly low.
The folks over at FORVM maintain a list of what they call "notorious fake sellers" - people who know they are selling fakes, but don't care. Google "FORVM NFSL", have a peek and see if your seller is on their list. They also maintain a database of fake coins seen on online sales (including eBay); check and see if your items have been reported before (just search the fakes database for "spintria", and keep the kids away from the computer while you do so - some of those fakes are a lot more risque than the originals!)
Most of those "good sellers on eBay" also have their own sales websites, or also sell via more reputable marketplaces like VCoins.
Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, "Meditations"
Apparently I have been awarded one DPOTD.
The good part is, most ancient coins on eBay are actually real. Especially the lower grade and common bronzes.
I would guess, based on my own experience, that 95% of British Anglo-Saxon coins listed on eBay are fakes. If not higher. All modern fakes. This wasn’t the case 10 years ago but it sure is now.