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 Replies: 15 / Views: 5,046 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
870 Posts |
My girlfriend and I had a little numismatic contest that relates to these.. I'll tell you the details later. Anyway, here are an 1891-O Dime:   An 1853 Contemporary Counterfeit (thank you, Moe and Prethan!) Trime:   And, lastly, an 1858 Trime:   Once I have a consensus on grading, I'll share the details of the contest if anybody cares. =) Thank you! And happy Thursday to all! Edited by delaner
07/15/2010 8:51 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8904 Posts |
Just IMHO, and not to be any bearer of bad news, that 1853 Trime looks way off font-wise and the 1858 is a bit strange looking to my eyes as well. That, in turn, makes me wonder about the 1891. Are you sure these are authentic coins? (Just for comparison: my 1852 and 1861 trimes)
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Rest in Peace
United States
4849 Posts |
Good catch Moe! That 1853 is definitely off, my guess is that it is a contemporary counterfeit with a home made die. I have seen a few of those. Interesting.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
870 Posts |
No - no way!! Interesting!! =) Cool learning... The dime came from a different lot. I will inspect a bit more carefully (easily done, now that the pics are taken). Thanks for the head's up! =)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
870 Posts |
I'm looking at Photograde which has '52's and '53's of various states... I don't see anything wrong with this one...?
It also seems like a REALLY difficult coin to copy, but I suppose I shouldn't write it off as a possibility - it honestly hadn't even occurred to me! =)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1000 Posts |
I also think the 1853 is off, especially after looking at photo grade. The top of 8 on yours is open, the letters look more bubbly, and the stripes on the shield are different.
That being said, I would send a PM to Prethen on this forum and ask him to take a look at your post. He will give you a definitive answer. It may actual have some additional value if it is an older counterfeit I believe.
Ken
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3234 Posts |
The 1853 is absolutely a counterfeit (I also PM'd the poster).
It's funny when I glanced through the post I didn't pay too close of attention to the coins, just the dates, and missed the obvious! I only noticed after I read the other posts.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3294 Posts |
The 1858 looks harshly cleaned.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
870 Posts |
Fascinating!
I think the dime was cleaned as well - it's heavily scratched on the obverse. But how do you grade these (other than the knock-off, of course). =)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3234 Posts |
The 1858 3CS is harshly cleaned and at best is a VF20. The dime looks choice VF, but with all that crud it's hard to tell exactly what's going on with it.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8904 Posts |
Here's a picture of an 1858 Trime for sale on ebay. It matches with the OP's 1858. (Apparently the Mint changed how the date font looks during the intervening years between 1858 and 1861...) Also you can note the 1858 Trime CCF has posted in the Coin Facts section. It also seems to match the OP's coin. I now think the 1858 is authentic. VF details, harshly cleaned, overall grade VG-10.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3076 Posts |
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Rest in Peace
United States
5375 Posts |
Agreed that the 1853 is fake. Shows how careful we have to be, even with circulated stuff.
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Valued Member
United States
321 Posts |
....I dont get it.. I agree 100% that the 53 looks counterfeit. but...why would anyone waste their time forging a 3CS? Especially 1853. It is not particularly valuable even in MS compared to other dates.
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Rest in Peace
United States
4849 Posts |
Quote:
....I dont get it.. I agree 100% that the 53 looks counterfeit. but...why would anyone waste their time forging a 3CS? Especially 1853. It is not particularly valuable even in MS compared to other dates. There are two primary types of counterfeits. Modern and contemporary. Moderns were forged to fool collectors and contemporary pieces were forged in order to pass as real money during a purchase. This coin, I am quite sure, is a contemporary counterfeit, meaning that it was forged around the same time that the coin was minted in order to pass off as real money. 3 cents was a lot of money back in the mid 1800s. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
870 Posts |
Actually, Prethan was filling me in backstage - he explained that counterfeiters made most of their money by counterfeiting in a cheaper metal like nickel rather than using silver. And of course, Johnny's right - don't forget the buying power of Three Cents in 1853. Three Cents has inflated to about $0.75 these days, but the buying power is a little different, even for the equivalent of 75c. =) Oh - and I just wanted to say a big thanks again to everybody that helped out on this and the other threads! :D It turned out to be a close numismatic contest with the girlfriend, but I think I won by a slim margin despite one coin being a counterfeit! w00tz   Edited by delaner
07/17/2010 9:14 pm
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Replies: 15 / Views: 5,046 |
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Posted 07/15/2010 3:00 pm
