Don't get burned - EBay seller warning.

TwoKopeiki

The following two auctions caught my eye, since owning a pair of Papyan mint 8 Reales would make for a very happy X-Mas. After closer examination into the coins and the seller and a having a conversation with a fellow collector about them, i can safely say that those are fakes, as well as many other things I saw in his store.

Improperly Listed Popayan mint 8 Reales (1)

Improperly Listed Popayan mint 8 Reales (2)

I have a tendency of getting overly excited about a possible "steal" on the 'Bay, so the second I saw the "P" mintmark - i transferred $300 into my PayPal account and got ready to set up a snipe. That's when a tiny voice in the back of my head went "too good to be true, isn't it?". So I pulled out my Calbeto and opened it on Columbia - "rrr" rating for the 1814/3 and "ee" rarity rating for the other one. Details matched, although the toning on the 1814 started to look suspicious and there were tiny inconsistencies about the lettering on both. That raised a small red flag. Just out of curiousity I decided to see this sellers other auctions - and it became obvious. Same coloration, same surfaces, same counterfeit look.

That raised another red flag.

Back to the listing - seller from Phoenix, Arizona, but accepts only PayPal...

Ditto, another red flag.

Checked feedback - long time member, but only one single feedback from a buyer. Quick check on Google showed some of the auctions this guy won and most seem to be from Taiwan (the few I saw looked to be white-metal forgeries). And now he decides to sell coins and lists a number of rarities! As a fellow numismatist pointed out - how many people have TWO Lafayette Dollars?

I wonder if I should post a similar warning on the LiteSide :

Because this guy is making money

I would like to bring this heap of red flags to your attention and yet again confirm an old belief...

IF IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE - it most likely is.

~Roman

CIVITAS

I made it half way down his list of items before all of them started giving me the "Item not found" error. So either ebay is malfunctioning (certainly possible) or someone at eBay agrees with you.

TwoKopeiki

Wow, that was quick. His store is still up, though.

I will post the images of the 8 Reales coins he was selling tonight (they are on my home PC).

The link at the bottom had a completed auction for a 1795 U.S. Bust silver dollar that sold for over $500.

TwoKopeiki

Here are the images of the coins in quesion:





I would love to own the originals. But I don't think the originals can be found in this great of a shape, too. Papayan mint (Columbia) was founded in 1538, two years after the conquest of this territory. By royal decree of June 29, 1729, a Mint was authorized. Since very productive gold mines are in this area, much coinage using this metal took place. Silver was obtained only in the process of refining the gold, so the Eight Reales pieces from this Mint are among the rarest ...

~Roman