Isle of man 1/20 oz gold coin

GoldCoinLover

I recently purchased another gold coin. I know it is an isle of man coin from australian, the date is 2003 and it has on one side of the coin what appears to be a sheep or goat. It cost me $30. Where did I buy it? A swap meet in phoenix. They had a bunch of coins, but the only gold ones were 2 1/20 oz isle of man coins, and a few 1/10 oz american eagles.

You know me, I tend to drive myself crazy to see if my coins are real are not. I got a 1908 indian ANACS slabbed and it came back AU58 with no problems, but I still don't feel right about it. I noticed today on the coin while in the slab I hadn't noticed before; theres a what appears to be a scratch near the chin of the indian, almost looks like a mirror image of the chin. Several people have told me that ANACS has good graders. But I feel like I'm going to submit it to PCGS just to be sure.

Anyway, I didn't notice anything different about the coin until I came home and compared it to my proof american eagle. The coin really is different. Oh, on the cardboard holder it said gem PL, but it looks more like proof. The coin looks flawless. Heres whats different: On my proof american eagle, and all the other proof coins I've seen, the background tends to appear black, while the devices tend to appear frosted. Like a black and white cameo. On this coin, it was the opposite. The background was frosty, and the devices (The goat and elizabeths head) appeared to be reflective black. Is this normal for these type of coins? I'll try to take a picture soon of it.

Any tips about buying coins from swap mets? Don't do it? I've heard that there are many more doctored coins than counterfeit ones? Please help.

Thank you

tonyhar

"I know it is an isle of man coin from australian" ??
The Isle of Man is nowhere near Australia!
We are Self Governing Island between the UK and Ireland.

GoldCoinLover

<< <i>"I know it is an isle of man coin from australian" ??
The Isle of Man is nowhere near Australia!
We are Self Governing Island between the UK and Ireland. >>



Hmm. the coin says on it "austraila"

GoldCoinLover

It also has some weird chinese character on one side. Anyone help me recognize this coin?

Cruzi

Its a 1/20th oz 24 carat gold lunar bullion coin from the Perth Mint in Australia, which incidently is as close to the Isle of Man as Los Angles is to Sydney.

Gem PL means Gem proof like, it is the usual uncirculated issue for the Perth Mint, these can be differentiated by having frosted fields and Polished design, the proof coins are the reverse of this.


More Information from the Perth Mint, Australia.

Spiffy469

theres one on ebay right now

Link!!!

I believe this is what you have

Jeff

SYRACUSIAN

This is a bullion coin, there's no reason to make a counterfeit. You can always verify the diameter and weight if you have a scale.

SYRACUSIAN

And the only swap I trust is our wekend swap.

1jester

Buying coins at swap meets? Well, I don't think I'd advise that unless you're really experienced, or buy from a trusted dealer, or both. Even then you could be setting yourself up for trouble, as the counterfeiter's craft is nearly impossible to ascertain in many cases. Why not play it safer and buy from a trusted source, like many of the dealers who post here? It would seem to me that this would be a better alternative than to freqent swap meets.

trozau

A few things:
a) You said the coin says Australia on it - then it is from Australia (not Isle of Man even if the seller says so - he either lied or did not know otherwise)
b) It is 2003 with goat and Chinese writings (must be the Chinese Lunar series from Australia's Perth Mint)
c) A gold bullion coin from Isle of Man would say Isle of Man (if 2003, they would be the cat series and have a type of cat on it)
d) As others have said Australia is very far away and is not another name for Isle of Man
e) If the only certfication company you feel comfortable with is PCGS then I suggest you buy only PCGS certified coins. Most folks here will tell you that ANACS is reputable and would advise you that it is unnecessary to have the coin re-certified by PCGS. Personally I would trust ANACS, but if the only thing that would help you keep your sanity (against most advise you will get from the members of this forum) would be to have PGCS re-certify/re-grade the 1908 Indian then do so. It is your choice.
f) Finally, lighten up kid. Don't be so paranoid. Learn more about the stuff you want to buy before buying them. If something catches your eye on the spur of the moment that you know nothing about, pass on it, research about it and catch it the next time.