Posted 04/01/2019 08:05 am
Here is a pertinent passage from an entry I wrote about Parthian coins for Numiswiki some years ago:
The Parthians minted coins exclusively in bronze and silver, with the silver getting debased to billon in some issues in the second half of the series. Most authorities agree that, as Mike Markowitz of CoinWeek states, "there were no authentic (Parthian) gold issues." This means that if ever you see a gold Parthian coin advertised, it is almost certainly a modern fake. Around 1990 a number of gold coins, supposedly all from a newly discovered first century Parthian hoard, appeared on the London market. A large sampling of these coins was examined by Dr. Allan Walker who, in his published findings in the "Bulletin on Counterfeits" (Vol. 19, No. 2, 1994/5), stated that the coins were "all brilliantly made forgeries." Walker's conclusion was endorsed by noted numismatist Professor T. V. Buttrey, who was Keeper Emeritus of the Fitzwilliam Coin Cabinet at Cambridge University. The lesson here: don't let anyone sell you a gold Parthian coin!
The Parthians minted coins exclusively in bronze and silver, with the silver getting debased to billon in some issues in the second half of the series. Most authorities agree that, as Mike Markowitz of CoinWeek states, "there were no authentic (Parthian) gold issues." This means that if ever you see a gold Parthian coin advertised, it is almost certainly a modern fake. Around 1990 a number of gold coins, supposedly all from a newly discovered first century Parthian hoard, appeared on the London market. A large sampling of these coins was examined by Dr. Allan Walker who, in his published findings in the "Bulletin on Counterfeits" (Vol. 19, No. 2, 1994/5), stated that the coins were "all brilliantly made forgeries." Walker's conclusion was endorsed by noted numismatist Professor T. V. Buttrey, who was Keeper Emeritus of the Fitzwilliam Coin Cabinet at Cambridge University. The lesson here: don't let anyone sell you a gold Parthian coin!
