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OK, the modern fantasy "pattern" coins are gettin' out of hand.

lordmarcovanlordmarcovan Posts: 45,409 ✭✭✭✭✭
in World & Ancient Coins Forum
Don'tcha think? I do a search for 1901-dated British Empire coinage and it's shocking the number of fantasy issues are coming up. Some are listed with full disclosure that they're modern, others aren't. image

Collector since 1976. On the CU forums here since 2001.

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    shirohniichanshirohniichan Posts: 4,992 ✭✭✭
    I find the same thing when I look for George V commonwealth coins and keep finding "1936" Edward VIII fantasy pieces. image
    image
    Obscurum per obscurius
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    lathmachlathmach Posts: 4,720 ✭
    Ya, a lot of sellers don't say they're fantasy coins to get a high price from buyers that don't know the difference.
    It's a sick way to make a buck.

    Ray
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    coinpicturescoinpictures Posts: 5,345 ✭✭✭
    My understanding is that these are actually against Ebay's rules to sell, unless they have "COPY" or some sort of equivalent as part of the design. Of course Ebay doesn't enforce any of its own rules, so the point is moot.

    And please don't do them the justice of calling them "patterns". They are copies, replicas, restrikes, or counterfeits, depending on your mindset. A true pattern either predates or is contemporary with official coinage, not minted decades after the fact...

    *spit*
    Numismotography

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    U.S. Revenue Stamps

    image
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    wybritwybrit Posts: 6,999 ✭✭✭
    While at first I found them amusing, I am now tired of fantasy pieces as well, especially of Edward VIII, gothic crowns and copies of 20th century rarities like 1954 pennies. They are a cancer on numismatics - and by and large they are unattractive. The Edward VIII pieces are real garbage - they don't look anything like the original Paget portrait.
    Former owner, Cambridge Gate collection.
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    SylvestiusSylvestius Posts: 1,584 ✭


    << <i>My understanding is that these are actually against Ebay's rules to sell, unless they have "COPY" or some sort of equivalent as part of the design. Of course Ebay doesn't enforce any of its own rules, so the point is moot.

    And please don't do them the justice of calling them "patterns". They are copies, replicas, restrikes, or counterfeits, depending on your mindset. A true pattern either predates or is contemporary with official coinage, not minted decades after the fact...

    *spit* >>



    With specific reference to Edward VIII fantasy coinage 'COPY' would not generally be required because the fantasy pieces generally look nothing like any of the genuine Edward VIII pieces. The closest fantasy piece i came across (that i owned) was an Edward VIII crown, the obverse was exactly the same design as the proper Edward VIII coinage, the reverse was the wreath design of George V. So it looked as close as contemporary could get. The genuine Edward VIII crowns had the George VI 1937 crown reverse.

    Anyhow i do not believe that there is any law in Britain that requires COPY to be placed on repro coins. I asked a question months ago on here about this, but no one seems to know. I gave some links to repros of medieval groats struck in sterling silver to the same design (the legends have to be altered i believe so that collectors can distinguish between a real one and a fake one) but there was no COPY anywhere in sight. I am beginning to believe that the Brit position is that the coins have to have a marker on them (be it a mintmark or differing legends from real specimens) that indicates that they are not genuine, but the word REPRO or COPY is not compulsory, nor have i ever seen it on those repro coins that they sell in museum gift shops.





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