1787 Fugio Cent - Fake Or Real

sorry, above my paygrade

(Am I getting paid here jbuck? )

The soft details and the "pinholes" ( gas porosity defects) tend to be characteristics of a casting.

You just have to know what casting pinholes look like compared to corrosion.. I've been involved in foundry consulting for around 40 years so it reminds me of a casting and absolutely I could be wrong. If an original Cent was used as the pattern your coin will show the exact details of a true cent. You have to look at the surface to judge. I do believe a real fugio cent weighs in at 10.2 grams, but of course back then there weren't exact standards.

Update: It has been determined it is an exact match for a 1787 Newman 20-X R-3 Fugio Cent. How much that means I'm not sure.

Thanks Marv65. Would the characteristics you speak of also be present on a coin that was cleaned with an acid solution, vinegar and salt, etc? The consensus among those who seem to specialize in these is that it's legit, but that doesn't mean it is. My understanding is that to make a mold you would need a pretty solid example of the coin to start with. Since the 20-X is an R-5 Fugio, wouldn't that tend to indicate it is highly unlikely that someone used a 20-X to make a mold for counterfeits?

Dang it! I just knew it..

What about buried in the ground for a period of time with soil that had high levels of certain substances, or perhaps a sub-par planchet with issues to begin with? Many of the certified Fugios I look at in very high grades seem to have somewhat of a sand-cast look to them. I've looked at about 100 of them the last few days.

In other words, is there a sensible situation where you could observe what you observe, but it also be legit?