New purchase - my first contemporary counterfeits
Omegaraptor
Posts: 541 ✭✭✭✭✭
So a while back I was scrolling through Ebay listings and noticed a peculiar auction. Two Seated Half Dollars with a starting price of $25, and both looked quite beaten up and corroded... in a pattern that didn’t look consistent with silver. Looking closer, I realized the coins were not made of silver, but cast fairly crudely in some pot metal. Figured this was a chance to snag some contemporary counterfeits for a cheap price. I won both for the opening bid at $25 total.
I finally received these... well... “coins” in hand today. Here’s what they look like:
Yeah... these are definitely lighter than a silver half dollar at about 9g compared to the usual 13.3g, so most likely antimony was the metal used. Unfortunately the environment does not like antimony as much as many other coinage metals, and most of these antimony cast counterfeits didn’t stand the test of time. I believe the first coin was test-marked at more than one point along the edge. Perhaps the obverse digs were done by someone at one point to denote a “bad” coin.
On the first coin, the date looks to be either 1843 or 1845 - I will do more comparison with images of genuine pieces to be sure, but good chance it’s 1843. Unfortunately on the second coin the obverse is toasted and the date is gone. Maybe made during the Civil War as large numbers of circulating counterfeits were made at that time. I’ve heard an estimate than 1 in 3 coins in circulation were fake by the time of General Lee’s surrender. If I can get some more research done I will send images and a description to Gerry Fortin and the LSCC and see if I can get the first coin included in the LSCC web-book.
Writeup shamelessly copied from Cointalk, as I didn't feel like doing a whole new writeup. The exciting news is I still have two more numismatic packages coming in the next week!
"You can't get just one gun." "You can't get just one tattoo." "You can't get just one 1796 Draped Bust Large Cent."
Comments
Sounds like you’re having fun with these, enjoy 🌞
Mr_Spud
Half dollars must have been popular with the contemporary counterfeiters over the years.
I know there are many bust half dollar fakes, and quite a few of the early walkers have known contemporary fakes.
I have not collected counterfeits, however, I did buy a fake Morgan out of the antique shop - for a discount - after I showed them it was fake, just to get it off the market. Cheers, RickO
Very cool indeed!
I have a nice little group of cast counterfeit halves and a slq that I picked up from Stone ages ago...
I don't know alot about these, but it's fun to contemplate their existence in those tough days of scraping by in hard times...
For the majority of forumites who respond with modern fakes, contemporary counterfeits and numismatic counterfeits are completely different things..🙂
Neat pickups. I like contemporary counterfeits. I have a cast seated half dollar like one if these but I think 1853. My favorite are the hand cut die ones, though.
** have a nice little group of cast counterfeit halves and a slq that I picked up from Stone ages ago...**
Stone! That’s a blast from the forum past! Great guy!