Not a real coin (1800 half dime)

rhedden

Time to shut this joker down. Be sure to read the whole story about the dealer who confirmed it as Genuine first.

link to auction

braddick

Although the reverse is just awful, the obverse, upon first glance, looks decent (not real, mind you- just kind of not-too-shabby looking is all).

lordmarcovan

What braddick said. The obverse might have almost fooled me from a distance, since I'm not a half dime geek, quite. But the reverse screams "Made in China".

LanceNewmanOCC

<< <i>Although the reverse is just awful, the obverse, upon first glance, looks decent (not real, mind you- just kind of not-too-shabby looking is all). >>



i concur. if not for the date it would look like a beast
.

airplanenut

<< <i>What braddick said. The obverse might have almost fooled me from a distance, since I'm not a half dime geek, quite. But the reverse screams "Made in China". >>

The reverse screams "filled with chocolate" or "made from plastic"

daOnlyBG

Just out curiosity, what on the reverse gave it away? I wouldn't have bid on this item because of a few red flags (one of them being the nose on the obverse), but the pic was a bit too blurry for me to make judgment on the reverse.
I should note that I'm not experienced with circa-1800 coins.

MrHalfDime

I saw that item when it first appeared, and have been watching it. I was curious about the seller's comment:

"I HAVE TAKEN IT TO TWO COIN DEALERS TO CHECK IT OUT. ONE CONFIRMED IT WAS GENUINE AND THE OTHER THOUGHT IT WASN'T BUT COULD NOT BE SURE."

The presumed dealer who thought it was genuine might not want to quit his day job, as the half dime is an obvious fake. Admittedly, I am one of those that Lordmarcovan refers to as a half dime geek, but familiarity with the Draped Bust design and die marriages would instantly flag this example as a counterfeit.

To answer DaOnlyBG's question, among several clues, perhaps the 'perfect' shape of all of the letters and numerals (not as they should appear, but perfectly constructed and aligned), their relief, and positioning make them appear machine made, and not hand made. Perhaps the biggest giveaway, though, was the stars and their relief. Draped Bust stars are a series of six intersecting diamonds, while the stars on this piece are too 'perfect', with an apex at the center rather than a depression.

I see the offending item has thankfully been removed.

daOnlyBG

<< <i>To answer DaOnlyBG's question, among several clues, perhaps the 'perfect' shape of all of the letters and numerals (not as they should appear, but perfectly constructed and aligned), their relief, and positioning make them appear machine made, and not hand made. Perhaps the biggest giveaway, though, was the stars and their relief. Draped Bust stars are a series of six intersecting diamonds, while the stars on this piece are too 'perfect', with an apex at the center rather than a depression. >>


That makes sense- thanks. The letters/numbers were certainly too crisp for what he described to be an "XF" example, or whatever sub-AU grade he reported.

rhedden

If the obverse stars left any doubt, the shape of the shield on the reverse sealed it. Bogussimo! That's the numismatic equivalent of the musical term "fortissimo."

By the way, the first dealer was right. It was real. A real POS, that is.

ColonelJessup

Is that a date or PMD?

Diva or half-dime, it's singing waaay off-key

LoveMyLiberty

That's a pretty bad fake. Looks like it's made from plastic,
On wednesday.

Here's two real 1800 H10c. Top one is mine, but I forget
who owns the bottom one.

ColonelJessup

Perhaps this is a new Large Date variety.

lordmarcovan

I suspect this one was a case of ignorance rather than dishonest greed. I tactfully contacted the seller and he or she took down the auction.