Suspect 1873 Half Sovereign - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 6 / Views: 1,315
halfcrown New Member United Kingdom 10 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 08:18 am Hi all, Looking at what appears to be an 1873 gold half sovereign (see pictures attached). I'm wondering if it might be a fake as the surface is very uneven looking (not evenly shiny as most gold coins online seem to be). In particular on the obverse, the lettering has shiny gold around it but the surface on the face appears to be worn away (apart from around the edges - see nose/eye for example). The reverse is similarly uneven (see worn dull patch under "INA" in "REGINA" on the top right). Unfortunately I don't have accurate enough scales to determine if it is indeed gold by weight. Wondering if anyone has seen gold coins in similar states to say whether the surface looks 'normal' (even if damaged)? I did think about cleaning it to try to polish up the surface, but if it is real then I understand there's a good chance of me destroying the surface. Any advice much appreciated. Thanks! Edited by halfcrown 07/26/2020 08:20 am Report this Post to the Staff

PaddyB Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 945 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 09:59 am The colour is a major concern. Gold does not tarnish, so that colour suggests a copper based alloy, possibly originally with a gold plated finish. Report this Post to the Staff
Hogarth Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 735 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 11:12 am I agree with Paddy. Also: why a proof? Report this Post to the Staff
halfcrown New Member United Kingdom 10 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 11:57 am Oh well, I thought as much. Thanks for confirming. Hogarth, I'm afraid I don't understand your question ("why a proof?") Report this Post to the Staff
Hogarth Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 735 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 12:45 pm Doh! My apologies H, I was confusing this with something else I was viewing at the same time. Report this Post to the Staff
westernsky Pillar of the Community United States 7627 Posts	Posted 07/26/2020 2:16 pm Needs a soak in acetone to remove the surface crud. Report this Post to the Staff
halfcrown New Member United Kingdom 10 Posts	Posted 07/27/2020 2:16 pm After a couple of soaks in acetone it's come up much better - more evenly gold (although with some grey areas that don't seem to want to shift, even with a rub). Happier that it's more likely to be genuine - thanks for the advice. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 6 / Views: 1,315

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