1776 American Liberty Coin Real or Fake? Help!

I found this coin going through my grandfathers coin collection that was given to my mom. He used to own a silver mine in bolivia in the early 1900's before it was seized from him. This coin was with many other old coins from Spain dating in the early 1800's.

I know there are a lot of fakes out there ... any experts that can help on this coin?

 

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Well, at least it doesn't have the word "COPY" stamped under the WM

 

Check the coin's edge to see it the word "copy" is there.

 

haha ya ... that's a start

 

no, it doesn't say copy on the edge either

 

The one below was on another forum and it looks awfully close to your's. The owner of this one stated the word "copy" was discreetly placed on the edge of the coin:

 

that does look similar, although I would imagine that is the purpose of a copy. I will take a closer look at the edge and post some pics, but I'm pretty sure the edge is smooth all the way around.

Would a local coin shop be able to verify the authenticity?

Thanks! I appreciate the help!

 

Hang on till some of the others get on line. Someone may know just by looking.

 

It depend's on who the owners of that shop are . Wouldn't hurt to ask. How did you come by this item ?

 

Is there a seam along the edge?

 

Hi All,

These pieces are basically considered all fakes made from the early 1900s until just recently. Even the "original" examples that have sold over the years in prominent collection have recently been brought into question as to their authenticity. There are literally thousands of fakes of this coin and most do not have the word copy on them. Your piece looks from the picture to be a Peter Rosa copy made somewhere in the 1960-70s. They are cool pieces and are normally found in collections just to fill a hole. They do not have much value as they are known to be counterfeit, but they do hold collector value if they are of great quality. Hope this helps.

 

The calvary finally came!

 

LOL, I would have seen this earlier but was involved in an extremely intense "battle of the sexes" in Cranium tonight!!!!! (FYI We [the men] won but it was a close battle!!!)

 

hmm... do any real ones even exist? To answer the coinman and coinmaster's questions, there is no seam on the edge. I found this coin in a box of really old (mainly 1806 spanish dollar) coins that were passed down to my mom from my grandfather. He owned and operated a silver mine in Potosi, Bolivia. I believe his family came from europe in the 1800's. He was not a coin collector so I'm not sure how he got this coin but I'm pretty sure that it has been in that box for decades.

Thanks for the help nerarities!!

A few other coins in the box

 

nice inheritance .

 

indeed!

 

Hi Heathbr,

I am not an expert on these in any way, but the 1800s series 2-8 reales are somewhat common in todays scheme of things. Even not being a coin collector, anyone might save something of this nature because of the date. Also, there are many counterfeits of these that have been made. I know that I have a few of 1776 Portrait 8 reales in stock that I have taken in trade and they are worth $50+ to me because of the date. Hopefully someone on the site can help a bit more than I could on this piece. Unfortunately, I stop at 1792 in my knowledge, unlike most who start at 1793 when the US Mint started!

 

Thanks for your help!

 

Here are some additional pictures of the size and the side if these help!

 

It is definitely cast, you can see the seam on the edge.