Counterfeit Grant W/Star On The Bay

Yep, without a doubt. Looks like one of the modern Chinese issues. Those with an ebay account need to report it.

It's definitely not a very convincing counterfeit!




Two things jumped out very quickly for me:

1. The position, orientation, style and design details of the star on the obverse are not correct.

2. I don't see the "G" for Laura Gardin Fraser -- the designer of the Grant Memorial half-dollar and gold dollar -- under the portrait of Grant on the obverse.

Looks odd to me, as stated the Star isn't right.
And overall the coin just looks flat, no eye appeal.

Great thread nickelsearcher. Very educational.

Bummer ... I reported the coin as counterfeit through my E-Pray account ... but I now see it has been sold for $399 to a very unfortunate person.

I truly hate to see folks get ripped of by cheap fakes ... especially in my favorite series.

Sooo ... since the coin is still there to view .. .. a few additional counterfeit ID clues that apply to all coins ... you do not need specialized knowledge of any coin or series to recognize these two key indicators ...

Look always at the fields and legends.

Using this counterfeit as an example ... and with true regret for the unfortunate collector who purchased this fake ...

The fields of a cast counterfeit will always show porosity and minor proud dots and lines that are the result of the casting process.

This coin shows these in spades ... mouse over the obverse image and check out the tiny holes in the fields ... those are micro-porosity from the casting process.

You will also find miscellaneous dots and lines that are proud of the surface ... the US mint did not issue coins with those features.

The legends of a cast counterfeit are never crisp ... they exhibit a fuzzy and 'beat up' look. It's thankfully tough to replicate the crisp legend details of a genuine coin.

Again .... this coin shows this everywhere. For those interested ... mouse over the reverse image and take a look at E PLURIBUS UNUM ... this legend appears fuzzy and soft ... a valuable tool for Counterfeit Detection.

Of course specialized knowledge of the coin and/or series is always your best bet against counterfeits ... and that is the reason way we share and learn here at the CCF.

The commemorative specialists correctly identified the shape/position of the star and the lack of the designer initials.

I remind all again that incuse details are very difficult to counterfeit ... so those are always a great beacon if you have knowledge of the coin/series.

Bummer that it sold to an unsuspecting collector.

David