Retromodo Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Hi I found this sovereign which looks good to me, is it fake? I was planning to buy it but wasn’t sure. any information will be appreciated Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Meenderink Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 The 1904 Gold Sovereign you have posted is a counterfeit. The details of both the obverse and reverse DO NOT match a genuine coin. Also, the color of the coin is suspect as it may not even be plated in real gold. See the below genuine example and note the entire coin is wrong. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobymordet Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Hello and welcome. I am not sure that just looking at pictures would be an adequate measure of authenticity. It would be important to weigh it. I compared your coin to NGC stock photo of 1905, included below. The design elements seem to match well enough. Your coin has much better detail. The only inconsistency that I noticed is the OBV & REV rims. Your coin is in better shape but the rim design seems uneven as compared to the NGC 1905 pic. I am not sure if it just the pics or not, but I would recommend you consider a graded, encapsulated coin to better ensure authenticity. It seems these coins are $500+ in melt alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobymordet Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 On 3/1/2024 at 1:53 PM, Mike Meenderink said: The 1904 Gold Sovereign you have posted is a counterfeit. The details of both the obverse and reverse DO NOT match a genuine coin. Also, the color of the coin is suspect as it may not even be plated in real gold. See the below genuine example and note the entire coin is wrong. Cheers . . . .I second his opinion (LOL) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EagleRJO Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Just the mushy details with completely intact rims on the posted coin is an indication of a counterfeit coin. Unless you know how to properly authenticate and grade gold coins, which is an advanced area of coin collecting, stick with coins that have already been authenticated and slabbed by a well known TPG like the attached by NGC. It will help save you from possibly being ripped off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWB Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Retromodo: Complete fake. If the seller tells you it's real he/she is lying. If they say "I don't know" then they shouldn't be selling coins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenstang Posted March 1 Share Posted March 1 Counterfeit, stay away. All you need to do is look at the date. It is wrong among other areas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powermad5000 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 The posted coin is definitely a counterfeit. The details on both sides are off. They seem artificially enhanced. One of the first things I noted, however, was the fact that the dentils on the obverse and rim design on the reverse are not even. They fade on both sides and seem not evenly struck as would be in a genuine example. Also I did denote that the date numerals were misshapen. Especially the 9. I am sure if I looked longer I would be able to find more things wrong with it, but I don't seem to see a point in spending any more time when there are too many red flags right from the start. Henri Charriere 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henri Charriere Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 Too bad I came late to the party and was unable to cross-examine the witness. If I could, I would go beyond the coin. For example, who is the seller? Did you see this on a website? Is he affiliated with a business? Reviews? A refund policy? I ask because you "found" it and the party you should be interrogating is the seller. The way you present the matter suggests a casual encounter with a vendor on the street. Now, had you mentioned a prominent dealer by name, you wouldn't need to inquire further. As we are talking a fairly decent amount of money and your familiarity with the coin series is scant enough to jump onto a coin forum to ask the most basic of questions, I would strongly suggest you stick with reputable dealers and if you want this coin strongly enough, you may wish to pass on loose (raw) coins in favor of encapsulations. You want to be safe, not sorry. powermad5000 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retromodo Posted March 3 Author Share Posted March 3 Thanks everyone for the information, lucky I didn’t buy it powermad5000 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...