Julius Caesar - Does This Coin Look Allright To You?

ebay seller lucernae from Spain is one of the good sellers. I haven't heard of any problems with his coins. Another excellent seller on ebay is amfcoins from Canada. He also has his own site Ancient Coins Canada. I've bought from him before and I highly recommend him.

1) I call fake. It looks artificially worn and the flan is oddly shaped. Make sure you read the descriptions also because sometimes they may not put that its a replica/fake in the title but will in the description.

2) ebay is not some horrible place to buy from. I've gotten plenty of nice and authentic coins from sellers on there. Some on here sell on ebay as well. Like with any other place, online or in person, one must learn how to point out fakes, and point out questionable sellers.

Thanks, VK.

I take your point, but unfortunately the 'description' is no help this time.

My Two Cents.... take it for what it's worth.

In my experience one can find some authentic coins on ebay through great dealers. I acquired some legitimate coins, see the Diocletian. Common and not terribly expensive, so why would anyone fake it and priced right. Then we come to authenticate coins that are rare or less common, so then ebay users bid the coin beyond fair value or if it is a buy it now it is ridiculously priced. Why would I pay $500 for a coin on ebay if CNG sells it to me for $250. Finally I have found some rare yet what I call mediocre portraits that are unique but frankly look like crap to me. So I pay $100 on ebay for an authenticate crappy looking coin yet rare. I had a rare Geta but it is so horrible looking I am embarrassed by it, thus why it was sold on ebay.

So, as far as this JC goes, please pass up on it. If it is authenticate why is he selling via ebay with their high fees which are on par with an auction house?

I think the appearance of that denarius just does not look right. Looks cast and lacking definition.

First impressions are important - and that is my 1st impression.

Well, everybody. Thank you all for your comments. They are what I wanted to hear. Warts and all. I had some doubts, or I wouldn't have asked the question.

There doesn't seem to be anyone willing to tell me to 'go for it', and there is a lot of good advice why I should PASS on this one, so I will do just that, (pass).

Thanks for those (reputable) sellers, Ski, I will look them up and see if they have what I am looking for.

You always get those members 'enlightening' us about some great coin they got for next to nothing, so a bit of it rubs off and we all hope to find a 'diamond in the rough', an $800 coin for $200.

Unfortunately, by their very nature, the 'reputable' seller is going to know what he has and he is not going to list it for a 'bargain' price, but if you make a couple of 'bad' choices, before you end up with the diamond, it has cost you what you would have paid anyway, but with a whole lot of aggravation.

As one dear member (P.P.) said (elsewhere) "Keep adding those small savings together and when you have enough, well, then go after the 'big' one" (or something like that).

Thanks again, everyone, very much. (Sometimes we just need to be told that which we already knew.)

Looking through recent auctions for this Julius Caesar elephant denarius, the least expensive one I found sold for ~200 USD + buyer's premium + shipping.



Even though it is very worn, the price was lower than is often seen for the type. $300-500 is more typical of worn or badly centered examples; $500 and +++ for better.

Good luck in your hunt :)