Mohawk

Nope.

It's not just China.....Israel and Russia have thriving counterfeit coin industries as well. The fake Ottoman gold 100 Kurush I bought 11 years ago likely came out of Israel. And that fake actually wasn't laughable......it was frighteningly good. I was working at the coin shop then, and I ended up selling it to my boss for gold scrap. He initially thought about keeping it for his counterfeit collection, but ultimately decided it had to be destroyed....it was that deceptive. Many Chinese counterfeits are laughable but Israeli counterfeits are often frighteningly good. Many more of them likely evade detection than Chinese counterfeits.

Sadly, that's very true. And the more outlets to sell the fakes that pop up and the more stupid, useless, lying coin videos that pop up on YouTube, the better the fake coin business will do.

Well, that tells me what I need to know. I won't be wasting my time on this thread any longer. You go ahead and keep believing those YouTube videos and see where it gets you. You've gotten good advice from the members here. It's entirely your choice if you choose to follow it or not.

I'm with Coinbuf, Patman. It looks like a stain or some kind of residue on the surface of the coin that is causing what you are seeing.

And not a very convincing one at that. Definite cast job, like thousands of others out there.

Nope. It's just damaged and has no value over face.

Are you just looking for coins that are worth money in order to make a buck, or do you actually want to collect coins? That's an important thing to know going forward here.

I'm going to add the 1949 pfennig coins to my eBay hunts for sure. It's probably a variety that not many people are aware of, so I may actually have a shot at finding one. I guess we'll see!

As the others have said DO NOT believe anything you hear about coins on YouTube, unless the videos come from a reputable numismatic organization like NGC, PCGS, ANACS, the PNG or the ANA. Coin-wise, YouTube is a hive of liars and sensationalists that will say anything to create click bait in order to increase the numbers of viewers they get. But it doesn't change the fact that these people are liars and frauds. Definitely stay off of YouTube when looking for good coin information. Signing up here at NGC is a good step forward in getting better coin information.

I'm with Coinbuf and Jonathan....looks like a bad, cast fake. Fakes of this issue are extremely common and outnumber genuine examples many times over.

Don't forget Mercari. Lots of fake coins and other garbage coins popping up there now as well.

This is an appropriate pickup in considering the awesome pfennig article tj96 shared with us today. Anytime you can find Muldenhutten Mint East German in MS for under $10, it's a good day!! These are the seller's pics:

Speaking of the iguanas in Florida.....I'm honestly surprised that American Alligators don't snag more of them than they do. Maybe Alligators don't like how Iguanas taste.....

Hello and Welcome!!! Unfortunately, the others are correct....the coin pictured is a fake.

Sometimes, a coin just isn't the right one for you, Lem E. And there's nothing wrong with admitting that and taking action based on that decision. I had that happen to me a few times, but one stands out in particular. It was an 1894-A German New Guinea 2 Mark. It was an attractive coin, but it had been cleaned. As much as I tried, all I could see on the coin was the cleaning and I eventually ended up selling it. There's nothing worse collecting-wise than having a coin that makes your heart sink every time you look at it. It's probably a good idea to return the coin and keep searching for the right coin for you....and it is out there!! Best of luck on your continued hunt!

Hi TJ!! What an amazing article!!! I really enjoyed reading that....it even mentioned my beloved DDR "Aluchips"!! But the whole article was very interesting and has me giving some thought to adding the BRD's pfennige to my collection at some point here, though that could get tricky to house as they are 16.5mm compared to the DDR's even 17mm. I do have a couple of the BRD pfennige in proof sets....I have a 1974-J and 1980-J proof set from the BRD. That 1949 brass pfennig is certainly something that is going on my radar....how cool would it be to find one of those!! 1949 is also my dad's birth year, so it'd be additionally special to me. I'm so pleased that article made you think of me and I thank you greatly for sharing that with me and the whole community!

Hi Lem E. I'm with Bob and Roger....it shouldn't have gotten a 68. I like it at MS65* or possible MS65+*. I think it still deserves the star as the toning is quite appealing, IMHO.

I'll definitely keep you all posted. I think it's going to turn out really well, thanks to your sage advice and sharing your solution . Thank you again for that!

tj's a great guy all around and a great addition to the forum. What a gracious gift he gave you, Greg. And he gave me a gift, too. Thanks to you sharing your Type Set album customizations, tj, I just placed an order with Whitman Publishing (along with 10 17mm airtites on eBay) for the stuff to make albums for my early East German and West German silver 5 mark collections!! You gave me the answer I needed for those pesky 17mm pfennigs....I'd never have come up with the awesome solution you did on my own. Thank you, my friend. My pfennige and I appreciate it and you greatly!!

Here's a shock.....I've never owned a single one. I handled many of them working at the coin shop, but I've never owned a single one.

Thanks tj!!! I have some research to do........

Cool!! Thank you tj. I really appreciate that!! My pfennigs need a better home than mylar flips in a box!

Great handiwork, tj!! I love it and I have a question for you......if you don't mind sharing, how did you make the gaskets? I'm still debating if my East German collection is going to be certified or if I'm going to make an album for it. I have a problem though as East German 1 Pfennigs are 17mm in diameter and Whitman and Dansco make 16mm pages and 18mm pages.....no 17mm. So, in seeing what you made, I'm thinking I could use an 18mm page with gaskets if I could figure out how to make a 17mm gasket.

That's mean to many brass tokens that look a lot better than those horrible President Dollars.