Unknown Lead Coin-Counterfeit? (Id: Fake/Counterfeit British Shield Sovereign)

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 3 / Views: 1,943
KurtS Pillar of the Community United States 5318 Posts	Posted 10/23/2008 03:09 am I ran across this unknown curiosity today. It is approx. 19mm in diameter and weighs 2.78 gr on a jeweler's scale. Made from a soft, pliable metal (possibly lead), it has a lot of signs of abrasion and flattening of devices. Admittedly, there are few details...but any hunches of what this may have duplicated? Something about it suggests a 19C. coin, possibly Spain? Report this Post to the Staff

Peter THOMAS Pillar of the Community Australia 2830 Posts	Posted 10/23/2008 05:22 am G'day, I've seen forgeries of an Australian florin, and a British crown, made in lead. I'm not sure who would be deceived by them: blind people; foreigners ? Having said that, your specimen is interesting. Forgeries have to have some similarity with a a recognized coin. The standard British, or Oz, or Kiwi, etc, sixpence was 19mm & 2.83g. The modern Oz 5-cent in CuNi still enjoys those dimensions. The pic on the right resembles the reverse of KG3 sixpences after the Great Recoinage, which puts it, possibly, in the vicinity of 1816~1820. There was a lot of counterfeiting in that era, in spite of the fact that it carried the death penalty. I have several forged shillings and half-crowns of those years, but none in lead. Maybe if you try illuminating the coin from different angles, you might get some more clues as to the design elements that it once displayed. An interesting discussion piece for any collection. Peter in Oz Report this Post to the Staff
Sap Moderator Australia 16834 Posts	Posted 10/23/2008 08:05 am To me, it most resembles a British "shield" sovereign of Queen Victoria. At 19mm, it's a bit too small, and at under 3 grams, it's way too light (sovereigns weigh nearly 8 grams). Not a very convincing forgery at all, though perhaps more so if it were gold-plated. But the "return on investment" would be quite high if it worked. It could, of course, be a piece of play money... though these were usually much smaller than the coins they imitated, to avoid the charge of counterfeiting. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis Report this Post to the Staff
KurtS Pillar of the Community United States 5318 Posts	Posted 10/23/2008 2:05 pm Thanks for both your input! Now that you mention it, it does resemble a "shield" sovereign. Although rather implausible as a fake, it has similar dimensions to a half sovereign--but still over a gram short on weight. Given similar dimensions, I wonder if this was "play money"--or gold-washed at some point to pass as real? I'm rather skeptical there since it has a plain edge. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 3 / Views: 1,943

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: World Coins and Currency Forums Forum: United Kingdom (Great Britain) Coins

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.18 seconds to rattle this change.

Unknown Lead Coin-Counterfeit? (Id: Counterfeit British Shield Sovereign)