Lesson Learned On A Counterfeit/Fake Purchase - Denarius Vitellius

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Author	Replies: 7 / Views: 2,713
Dutchgulden Pillar of the Community Netherlands 1204 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 06:18 am Some months ago I bought a (in my opinion) nice coin of vitellius. I didnt check the fake reports (stupid!) because at first sight it looked so genuine! Then, 2 months later I saw the very same coin for sale on a dutch online selling platform. After convincing the seller it was a fake by pictures of my coin and several of fake reports, the seller finally believed me. He said to me that he couldnt believe it was a fake at first sight because it looks so good! On forumancientcoins they agreed on my conclusion it was a fake after some matches of their fake reports.. One week ago I made contact with the seller of my coin.. and, believe it or not, I got refund after I have told him my plans to contact ebay. (it cost me 15 euros due shipping costs and paypay but its better than losing everything.) The reason I'm sharing this story with all of you is of course to warn not making haste decisions and maybe to recognise a fake coin better. Mine had no casting bubbles, seams or anything, a very dangerous fake! Here is the one I bought: The same coin on a dutch mp: Fake matches (not exact flan shape matches, but the similarity is great) : Edited by Dutchgulden 01/03/2015 06:24 am Report this Post to the Staff

Medieval Pillar of the Community 3772 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 06:36 am Thanks for sharing. Congrats to have a seller being (reasonably) honest after such a long time. By your opinion, is the seller experienced with ancient coins or is he just moving them around? Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21788 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 08:34 am With the fields as smooth as they are, it seems as if it could be a pressure cast copy. The details over the whole coin are mushy. XRF testing for other than silver should show up the alloy mixture used. Many years ago, I was also dudded by a silver plated lead copy of a denarius of Vitellius. Experience is a hard but very effective teacher. Report this Post to the Staff
Augustus Maximus Pillar of the Community Italy 1790 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 10:26 am Very dangerous fake. Glad to hear every thing worked out reasonable well. Report this Post to the Staff
echizento Moderator United States 23731 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 10:30 am I can see where you thought it was good, whoever made this did an excellent job to deceive. Only upon a close look and a check of the fake reports it can easy pass as genuine. I'm glad that the seller was honest enough to refund your money. Report this Post to the Staff
Dutchgulden Pillar of the Community Netherlands 1204 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 12:08 pm @Medieval I'm not sure, he is selling both modern as ancient coins. I'm pretty sure he knew that he was selling fake coins. the dutch seller who was selling that similar coin didnt know it was a fake. Glad to share it with all of you! Report this Post to the Staff
pishpash Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 3626 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 12:11 pm Painful lesson. Even though you got most of your money back. Report this Post to the Staff
Dutchgulden Pillar of the Community Netherlands 1204 Posts	Posted 01/03/2015 12:17 pm Not really painful, I would call it an affordable lesson ;-) Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 7 / Views: 2,713

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Lesson Learned On A Fake Purchase - Denarius Vitellius