Too good to be true - Part I
STONE
Posts: 15,275 ✭
I recently found the following coin for sale. The pics which accompanied the coin were poor, but after blowing them up and scrutinizing them a bit I was fairly confident of what I was purchasing - although I couldn't distinguish the exact die marriage with 100% certainty. I sent off the money and about a week later the coin arrived.
Now, as the coin appears in the images, it is a seemingly normal 1824 Capped Bust Dime. There are only 2 die marriages which accompany this date, JR-1 (relatively common) and JR-2 (very rare), so figuring out the diagnostics between the two coins is of minimal difficulty. But, that didn't really matter since I knew from the original (sellers) images that this coin was neither of those two die marriages!
Say that again -
"...was NEITHER of those two die marriages!!!"
That's correct, this coin did, and does, not match any known diagnostic of either the JR-1 or JR-2 die marriage.
But wait a second, the date clearly shows "1824". Yes it does - you (the reader) are not seeing things, it is not an optical illusion.
So, what do I have? I've sorted out the three most likely options:
1) Could it be a new Die Marriage? That's possible
2) Could it be a counterfeit? Another possibility
3) Could it be an altered date? It wouldn't be the first time!
I was quick to knock off #1 - 'a new die marriage'. Under a 16x magnifying lens I saw clear signs of the coin being harshly cleaned (now showing a granular surface), which to me indicated either a counterfeit or an altered date. Then I looked at the date very closely. The date showed no signs of an underdate "2" which all known genuine 1824/2 Capped Bust Dime's have! I also saw what I think are tool marks around the date area. A counterfeiter, purposely making an 1824 would not be as likely to make those marks - so #2, you're outta here. Next I was confident that this was a genuine Capped Bust Dime but with an altered date made to pass off as 1824. I immediately thought of which number would be most easily transformed into a "4". The number "1" wouldn't be too difficult! So, I opened my copy of "Early United States Dimes 1796-1837" by Davis, et al, and began comparing obverse and reverse diagnostics from my coin to all known 1821 die marriages. The date 1821 has both Large and Small date's, so I fairly confidently was able to pass on the small date. There are 7 large date die marriages which I needed to look at. This process wasn't too difficult either since certain diagnostics of my coin only fit 1 of the 1821 die marriages, JR-1.
So at this point I was 100% confident that the coin I bought was not an authentic 1824 Capped Bust Dime, but instead an altered date of an 1821 JR-1 Dime.
Currently I am in the process of having my money refunded through PayPal
SO, be careful out there. Know the coins you collect, know your series, buy the book and study it.
This is a very deceptive altered date which I would not doubt will fool another collector down the road.
Now, as the coin appears in the images, it is a seemingly normal 1824 Capped Bust Dime. There are only 2 die marriages which accompany this date, JR-1 (relatively common) and JR-2 (very rare), so figuring out the diagnostics between the two coins is of minimal difficulty. But, that didn't really matter since I knew from the original (sellers) images that this coin was neither of those two die marriages!
Say that again -
"...was NEITHER of those two die marriages!!!"
That's correct, this coin did, and does, not match any known diagnostic of either the JR-1 or JR-2 die marriage.
But wait a second, the date clearly shows "1824". Yes it does - you (the reader) are not seeing things, it is not an optical illusion.
So, what do I have? I've sorted out the three most likely options:
1) Could it be a new Die Marriage? That's possible
2) Could it be a counterfeit? Another possibility
3) Could it be an altered date? It wouldn't be the first time!
I was quick to knock off #1 - 'a new die marriage'. Under a 16x magnifying lens I saw clear signs of the coin being harshly cleaned (now showing a granular surface), which to me indicated either a counterfeit or an altered date. Then I looked at the date very closely. The date showed no signs of an underdate "2" which all known genuine 1824/2 Capped Bust Dime's have! I also saw what I think are tool marks around the date area. A counterfeiter, purposely making an 1824 would not be as likely to make those marks - so #2, you're outta here. Next I was confident that this was a genuine Capped Bust Dime but with an altered date made to pass off as 1824. I immediately thought of which number would be most easily transformed into a "4". The number "1" wouldn't be too difficult! So, I opened my copy of "Early United States Dimes 1796-1837" by Davis, et al, and began comparing obverse and reverse diagnostics from my coin to all known 1821 die marriages. The date 1821 has both Large and Small date's, so I fairly confidently was able to pass on the small date. There are 7 large date die marriages which I needed to look at. This process wasn't too difficult either since certain diagnostics of my coin only fit 1 of the 1821 die marriages, JR-1.
So at this point I was 100% confident that the coin I bought was not an authentic 1824 Capped Bust Dime, but instead an altered date of an 1821 JR-1 Dime.
Currently I am in the process of having my money refunded through PayPal
SO, be careful out there. Know the coins you collect, know your series, buy the book and study it.
This is a very deceptive altered date which I would not doubt will fool another collector down the road.
0
Comments
My Early Large Cents
Nice catch. I would expect nothing less.
Well played, well played. Chaching!
=========================
Roses are red and tones are too!
Stay tuned for Part II this weekend.
Ed. S.
(EJS)
<< <i>Did you weigh the coin? >>
No I have not weighed the coin. I am keeping the coin in the cardboard 2x2 that the seller sent it in, so that I can return the coin without any hassle.
I could assemble a blank cardboard 2x2, devoid of the dime, and just subtract the difference to get an approximate weight of the coin!
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
102 capped bust half dollars - 100 die marriages
BHNC #198
TD
Capt - this is a possible scenario, which I hadn't given too much thought yet, but is beginning to seem more favorable.
I just weighed the coin and it only comes to 1.9g, when an authentic uncirculated example should be approx. 2.7g.
Say you factor in wear, the coin should still weigh about 2.5g.
Therefore it may be a modern counterfeit afterall! Still an interesting piece
<< <i>You have the advantage of having the piece at hand, but I am not convinced that it is not one of the better quality Chinese fakes. One of the shops there does have the capacity to make fake hubs from a genuine coin, which they then remove the last digit of the date from. This hub is then used to make multiple dies into which a new last digit is engraved.
TD >>
Yes, I agree. It's most likely a Chinese counterfeit. They often marry the wrong dies or use the same
reverse die for many obverse dies.
Weigh it and put a caliper to it.
bob
My original assumption of the altered date seems to be incorrect and in favor of a much more deceptive alteration.
Shame on me for missing that diagnosis, but my praise to those that figured out the correct process of creation