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GB 1/2 Sov - authentic?
Walter
Posts: 145 ✭✭
I have this half sov here, came back 'Questionable Authenticity', looking for some GB experts to confirm.
It's the correct weight and is certainly gold, but the strike is very weak for a London mint strike. It's a common coin and its gold so the only motive would be a jeweler's copy but seems to have minor bag marks and light scuffs which would seem to contradict this.
The main unusual thing is the reverse rim, not sure about the London mint but this is the rim of the Melbourne mint:
and the Perth mint
What are your thoughts?
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Well, just Love coins, period.
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British sovereign counterfeiting
I can sorta see some of the stuff TokenTinker pointed out, but only because they were pointed out to me. The flat strike would have been my only clue that something was amiss, but the greyish looking stuff along St. George's sword hand and the back of his leg and the horse's foreleg caught my eye. What is that? Looks like the horse has a dab of it on his chin as well.
I must admit, there's about a 90-95% chance this one would have fooled me had I been offered it, raw in hand.
With a half sovereign weight of 3.993g ignoring weight lost to wear and assuming it's alloyed with copper or something with a similar atomic mass, it's purity will be between 0.9068 and 0.9298, unfortunately I don't have a better scale to increase the accuracy there .
Oh well, it cost me bullion, nothing lost, a lesson learned.
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I would not say one way or other without seeing the piece in person, but I am inclined to say that it is genuine.
TD
Well, just Love coins, period.
<< <i>Here's a 1901 half-sov from London.
>>
A Terner pedigree I presume?
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