Two elizabethan coins

[Et tu Brute]

Hello again. I'm purchasing some low grade elizabethan coins in order to learn and to study them, I would like also to distinguish fakes.

Among them there are two 25mm coins, but I'm a bit concerned.

Coin one is a sixpence, dated 1567, with rose and mintmark coronet. It weights about 2,7gr. At first sight I perceived a little strange color and gleam, but perhaps it's due to the way in which it was cleaned.

Coin two puzzles me a bit more. It's highly damaged. Has a date 15...9, I can't see the mintmark (coronet?) and it's as large as a sixpence... but it weights only 2,1/2,2. It's very damaged, but it's not a very low weight for a sixpence?

I don't know how common are fakes in elizabethan hammered, and I'm too green yet to spot them (except fantasy, very crude, etc). I have my doubts about these coins, but I don't see the point in faking such worn out, low grade and unattractive coins.

Any comment would be really appreciate. Sorry again for my bad english.

 

Edited April 15, 2016 by Et tu Brute

[Et tu Brute]

[Et tu Brute]

[Et tu Brute]

[copper123]

I dont think anyone would seriously want to fake such poor lookinh coins at all - they both look gen to me .

OK they are not scrap - but they are not far off

[Garrett]

I cannot say I'm an expert but if they are fake they (i guess) were made at the time to fool contemporary Elizabethan folk rather than collectors from subsequent generations.

If they were to be fake they would probably be cast, can you see any casting bubbles ?

Do they make a silvery sort of ting when you knock them together ?

Have fun !  

[Rob]

There will always be some variation in weight because mechanisation in Elizabethan times was virtually non-existent. 0.2 - 0.3 grams on a sixpence would be nothing to worry about. Factor in some wear and the fact that the second has been clipped and you are in the right ballpark for weight.

[Et tu Brute]

Thank to you all. I agree with you, it's nonsense to fake such worn out pieces. We beginners are over-cautious with fakes!

Fist one has a lot of marks and little holes, but I think these are no bubbles, but signs of wear and perhaps of an aggressive cleaning. Second one... is barely a coin anymore. I think this is guaranty of authenticity.

I have a lot of fun learning and classifying these low grade and relatively cheap coins; I can handle them with less care and am more fake-protected. Besides, although almost scrap, I appreciate them as historical items from a period and country that I admire. When i have more knowledge and confidence, I can by better pieces.

Regards

[copper123]

To be fair both coins fall in the range of a £5-£8  rummage bin pieces so if you got them for around £3-£4 each you did ok .

They are not serious coins but beginers coins but important for getting newcomers interested in coins , I would not doubt they are authentic, few forgeries of contemp pieces exist , more recent ones are common .

The penalty for forgery was death , at the time - it put a lot of folks off , clipping was more common.

[Et tu Brute]

In fact, the clipped one was a little less than 5 pounds, but the other a little more expensive, 14 pounds. It seemed better in the photo, the legends and mintmarks were legible and had more integrity. My problem is that here in Spain is difficult to get such pieces; I must buy online, on platforms like MA Shops or ebay. The fixed prices of nicer coins are sometimes really high, and I tend to think that if a nice coin is worth more than 80 or 100 pounds, it's OK to get a lower grade one in the 10-20 range, plus shipment. Unfortunately, I can't go to local shops or markets and get low grade hammered British coins from boxes for a few pounds.

By the way, I would appreciate if you can recommend me some online stores/numismatics where to buy hammered British, especially Elizabeth I and James I.

Regards

[Peter]

There is nothing wrong with your coins as they are serving their purpose of educating.You can't go wrong for £19 for 2 silver coins over 300 years old. Obviously you can google and find many hammered coins to buy.

I have bought from Historic Coinage (Clive), Saltford coins,Gillis,Lloyd Bennet,CC,Vosper and a few others including some US sellers. Auctions should also be on your radar although better pieces are sought after and bargains are difficult.I also often use VCOINS but you need to get in early on new listings.I don't discount ebay on new listings BIN and have sniped a few running their course. Don't forget we have online dealers on the forum who don't pay to appear on the top of google searches. I'm sure other forum members have favourites.Happy hunting.

[azda]

On 16. April 2016 at 0:40 PM, Et tu Brute said:

In fact, the clipped one was a little less than 5 pounds, but the other a little more expensive, 14 pounds. It seemed better in the photo, the legends and mintmarks were legible and had more integrity. My problem is that here in Spain is difficult to get such pieces; I must buy online, on platforms like MA Shops or ebay. The fixed prices of nicer coins are sometimes really high, and I tend to think that if a nice coin is worth more than 80 or 100 pounds, it's OK to get a lower grade one in the 10-20 range, plus shipment. Unfortunately, I can't go to local shops or markets and get low grade hammered British coins from boxes for a few pounds.

By the way, I would appreciate if you can recommend me some online stores/numismatics where to buy hammered British, especially Elizabeth I and James I.

Regards

I would reccommend that You buy a book or 2 first, leaping into The unknown without a little knowledge can be a dangerous and expensive thing

Edited May 23, 2016 by azda