1925 Lexington-Concord Commemorative In Original Box

From what I have read, replica boxes are made from balsa instead of pine, the dates on the front are stamped on the box instead of printed into the box, and the photos of fakes I have seen have very simple representations of the minuteman on the front. However the ink should be blue instead of black. The coin usually will "match" the box, and the green PVC-like residue on the obverse of this coin does suggest that it lived in a pine box for quite some time.

Great coin and box! If you can't tell from my avatar this is one of my top 2 favorite classic commemoratives... My avatar coin I shopped for for months to find an example I really liked.. And finally did.

I really wanted one of the boxes sets, but it was hard to find a coin in superb condition in the box, so I settled for a gem example of just the coin. I'm from Mass, went to U-Mass (home of the Minuteman) and have special memories in Concord that I never want to forget, so this half was perfect for me! Not to mention the historical aspect, not only for my state but the country. But growing up in mass the Lexington/Concord story was one heard over and over, drilled into our heads since grade school! Lol. I may have to try to find an empty box and buy just that..

Anyways, I really don't know how to tell a counterfeit box but you have a very nice set there!

From Coin Facts: http://www.coinfacts.com/commemorat...exington.htm




From a site called coinpage (pictures to compare against): http://www.coinpage.com/coin-image-4381.html

Some history...

https://goccf.com/t/122517

No problem.

I am sure he will still have something to add to this post.

He is that good.

Nice pick-up! It's always nice to supplement one of the classic US commemorative pieces with some of its associated materials! (At least IMHO!)

Your check for imprinted vs. surface printed dates is a good diagnostic for these pieces; the dates should definitely be pressed into the wood if it's a genuine piece.

In terms of the ink color, some variance from "blue" is found on genuine pieces. Ink color can range from very dark blue (almost black) to a grayish blue. Mine is somewhere between these two ends of the spectrum. The ink color has undoubtedly faded on many (if not all) of these pieces over the last 88 years, so one can't diagnose strictly on color (unless it is clearly not within the blue "family").

Have you measured your box? As noted above, the box should be a square of roughly 1-3/4" by 1-3/4" (a slight variation of 1/16th of an inch is OK). If one side is notably longer than the other, it's likely a problem. Yours appears to be square, but it would be good to confirm.

Of course, a key diagnostic is whether the box is pine or some other wood. The originals are pine, the known counterfeits are not. Are you familiar enough with the charactersitics of pine to tell? If not, do you know someone who is?

Overall, your box appears to be genuine but I can't be absolutely certain from just images.

Great piece and great history, also learned a lot re: the original holder! thanks for sharing.

(and if it does have PVC, give it the acetone bath and be careful- I bet there's a thread if you're not familiar with the technique)