replica ?

[kev]

I have just listed a 1562 sixpence on ebay and was disappointed to be contacted by somebody who informed me that it is a replica.

can any body on this forum confirm this ?

If it is a replica, does it have any value or are they common ?

Thanks in advance for your help.

My link

[1949threepence]

I have just listed a 1562 sixpence on ebay and was disappointed to be contacted by somebody who informed me that it is a replica.

can any body on this forum confirm this ?

If it is a replica, does it have any value or are they common ?

Thanks in advance for your help.

My link

I'm no expert on hammered coinage, but a bit more detail than this:-

Just to let you know, this is a replica. It is possible to tell by the mark on the reverse of the coin on the left side

Might have been useful.

[kev]

Thanks 1949 threepence.

I know nothing about coins. If somebody more knowledgeable than me says that this is a fake then so be it.

I would love to believe that this is the genuine article but, if it is not, then a bit more information would have been helpful.

Who made these replicas ? Do they have any value as replicas ? Is it common for old coins to be copied ?

[Leviathan]

Thanks 1949 threepence.

I know nothing about coins. If somebody more knowledgeable than me says that this is a fake then so be it.

I would love to believe that this is the genuine article but, if it is not, then a bit more information would have been helpful.

Who made these replicas ? Do they have any value as replicas ? Is it common for old coins to be copied ?

Welcome to our world.. well.. the short answer is.. yes. If they are seen to be worth something, someone somewhere will attempt it.

As for value, and I stand to be corrected here, I believe that contemporary forgeries have a value, and I certainly know of people out there who would specialise in these. Modern ones? They are just made to rip people off. All my opinion of course.

[TomGoodheart]

If they are sold as souvenirs from historical sites and are clearly marked as copies then I have little problem with them. But there are quite a few that aren't marked and they can be a problem, particularly for beginners.

Then there's the professionaly made pieces such as the Ashmore copies which can fool experts (in fact people actually collect Ashmore replicas as interesting pieces in their own right!)

And of course the actual fakes (which used to be made in the Middle East but now increasingly in China).

And there's contemporary (made at the time the 'real' coin circulated) copies which are of historical and numismatic interest. I uesd to have a small number of counterfeit Charles I shillings but sold them. But I still have a nice selection of fake £1 coins, just for amusement value! (And they are still being made, even today)

Any of these will have a value to someone. Whether it's for curiosity, historical interests or illegal reasons.

Edited May 4, 2010 by TomGoodheart

[Red Riley]

I actually found a similar coin in my mother's effects when she died 4 years ago. This then of course begs the question of where on Earth did she get it from? The thing was clearly not silver but what I had interpreted as a flaw in the blank could actually be read as a lower case 'r' (for 'replica'). I have it in the back of my mind that there was a stately home somewhere that was selling these things as souveneirs to tourists but which one this was I just can't say, but presumably this is where she got it from.

[Peckris]

I actually found a similar coin in my mother's effects when she died 4 years ago. This then of course begs the question of where on Earth did she get it from? The thing was clearly not silver but what I had interpreted as a flaw in the blank could actually be read as a lower case 'r' (for 'replica'). I have it in the back of my mind that there was a stately home somewhere that was selling these things as souveneirs to tourists but which one this was I just can't say, but presumably this is where she got it from.

Museums sell replica coins - sometimes made out of resin or similar. In design, very convincing, sometimes they have the initials of the manufacturers impressed into them, but small, so not that easy to spot. The Elizabeth 3d I was sold was in every way convincing, except it was twice as thick as it should be.

[Red Riley]

Museums sell replica coins - sometimes made out of resin or similar. In design, very convincing, sometimes they have the initials of the manufacturers impressed into them, but small, so not that easy to spot. The Elizabeth 3d I was sold was in every way convincing, except it was twice as thick as it should be.

This certainly isn't resin; my guess being stainless steel but with toning in all the right places, so very easy to be taken in. The 'r' being lower case is also very easy to confuse with a metal flaw whereas an upper case 'R' would be much more obvious.

I still have it somewhere, but I can't lay my hands on it at present.

[Peckris]

Museums sell replica coins - sometimes made out of resin or similar. In design, very convincing, sometimes they have the initials of the manufacturers impressed into them, but small, so not that easy to spot. The Elizabeth 3d I was sold was in every way convincing, except it was twice as thick as it should be.

This certainly isn't resin; my guess being stainless steel but with toning in all the right places, so very easy to be taken in. The 'r' being lower case is also very easy to confuse with a metal flaw whereas an upper case 'R' would be much more obvious.

I still have it somewhere, but I can't lay my hands on it at present.

I had two coins with the same initials on. The Liz I 3d was something that looked a fair imitation of silver but wasn't (steel?). The Roman bronze was resin, which perhaps gets used more often for base metal? Or perhaps only by this one company.

[kev]

I actually found a similar coin in my mother's effects when she died 4 years ago. This then of course begs the question of where on Earth did she get it from? The thing was clearly not silver but what I had interpreted as a flaw in the blank could actually be read as a lower case 'r' (for 'replica'). I have it in the back of my mind that there was a stately home somewhere that was selling these things as souveneirs to tourists but which one this was I just can't say, but presumably this is where she got it from.

Museums sell replica coins - sometimes made out of resin or similar. In design, very convincing, sometimes they have the initials of the manufacturers impressed into them, but small, so not that easy to spot. The Elizabeth 3d I was sold was in every way convincing, except it was twice as thick as it should be.

Thanks everybody for your replies.

I'm still not 100% convinced that this coin is not genuine. All the replicas that I can find on the internet, and all the comments on here, seem to suggest that the coin would either be marked 'copy' (in tiny writing) or would have 'r' for replica or perhaps manufacturers initials. I can find no such mark on this coin, although I note with interest that the replica HERE has the same 1562 date but clearly says 'copy' below the shield.

[Leviathan]

Keep it and put it in your 'A' section until a better one comes along. The only time I enjoy this kind of debate, with my own, is when I have it in hand and haven't bought it yet

[Red Riley]

Keep it and put it in your 'A' section until a better one comes along. The only time I enjoy this kind of debate, with my own, is when I have it in hand and haven't bought it yet

OK, I've tracked mine down and it is identical to yours, dated 1562. The 'r' in lower case is to the left of the French coat of arms i.e. the top left hand segment of the shield. That blob in the field on both your coin and mine is an 'r'. Q.E.D.

[kev]

OK, I've tracked mine down and it is identical to yours, dated 1562. The 'r' in lower case is to the left of the French coat of arms i.e. the top left hand segment of the shield. That blob in the field on both your coin and mine is an 'r'. Q.E.D.

Red Riley

OK Thanks Red Riley NOW I'm convinced

Thank you to everybody for your help.

[Peter]

Hi Kev

This is another one of those peskie replicas.

They are always catching people out.

Sorry to disappoint you.

http://www.omnicoin.com/coin/962111

Edited May 10, 2010 by Peter

[Peter]

and another..........

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELIZABETH-1ST-THREEPENE-1562-COPY-64-/270576290597?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Coins_BritishHammered_RL&hash=item3eff9a8b25

[Voynov_BG]

and another..........

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELIZABETH-1ST-THREEPENE-1562-COPY-64-/270576290597?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Coins_BritishHammered_RL&hash=item3eff9a8b25

Hi, I have the same coin as on first post here, looks from same die (please see image). I am sure that it is replica, tested - not silver, but also not Steel because material is soft and leave a clear black marks on white paper - as silver, lead, etc.

20 mm/ 2.7 grams

[Peter]

I believe they are pewter

[Leviathan]

That would make me look at whether they are contemporary..?

[Peckris]

That would make me look at whether they are contemporary..?

If you mean contemporary = "now", then yes. In those days people tended to clip not forge. Such forgeries that exist from that era are very crude.

[Leviathan]

I kinda mean't that if I was unsure, I would look to see if they were contemporary forgeries of their era.. and when that is ruled out, then we know it is a recent job

[Red Riley]

I kinda mean't that if I was unsure, I would look to see if they were contemporary forgeries of their era.. and when that is ruled out, then we know it is a recent job

Yes, pewter figures. Much is still made from pewter though and my guess would be that they were turned out by the bucket load in the 1980s or 90s. I have a further recollection that at one stately home (Warwick Castle rings a bell) you could pay £1 or something and strike your own coin on site. Whether this was the same coin we are talking about here I don't know.

[kev]

I kinda mean't that if I was unsure, I would look to see if they were contemporary forgeries of their era.. and when that is ruled out, then we know it is a recent job

Yes, pewter figures. Much is still made from pewter though and my guess would be that they were turned out by the bucket load in the 1980s or 90s. I have a further recollection that at one stately home (Warwick Castle rings a bell) you could pay £1 or something and strike your own coin on site. Whether this was the same coin we are talking about here I don't know.

Well it appears that it does have a value to some people

e-bay bids currently up to £31 with 5 hours left e bay listing

I'm amazed................ and not to mention very, very happy !

[TomGoodheart]

How .. odd! There's another replica on ebay; this time a Charles I threepence (or at least it's loosely based on a provincial Chas 3d) that I advised the seller was modern going for £51. Either people are happy to pay (to my mind ridiculous) loads for these things or they don't know what they are about.

I think the most I paid for a contemporary (ie 17th century) fake coin was £40 because I thought it was rather splendid. The monkey in the royal arms was particularly good!

Edited May 13, 2010 by TomGoodheart