.
..
1. COINS "IMPROVED" BY TOOLING
.
The four following pictures are showing a spectacular example of a heavily tooled coin (Herod eight prutot, die R72). On the first tooling (2nd picture) the letters added from 8:00 to 11:00 are very fancy and different than the norm (compare with the composite picture of this die at very right). After my protestation, the dealer retried it from Ebay before the end of the sale. But eight month later (Jan 29, 2007) the coin was back on Ebay after he removed the fancy letters previously added! (3rd picture). He retried it again before the end of the sale, after my renewed protestation. But on Feb 25 2007, the coin was back again on Ebay, for the 3rd time!
.
Another example:
.
Two last examples:
.
Close examination of heavily tooled coins:
As anyone can see, both coins below (Hendin 489) have been struck by the same die... and been then restored by the same hand! (same color, same technique, same final result). In both cases, the restoration is well done, the patterns are properly enhanced and the eye appeal is great. Unfortunately, the coin at right has been tooled in all its top right area.
.
The three coins below (Hendin 488) have also been struck by the same die. The coin in the middle is 100% original as the coin at left is painted at left and the coin at right is tooled at right! The next paragraph is dedicated to painted coins (good painting/bad painting)
.
2. COINS "IMPROVED" BY PAINTING
.
All the coins "improved" by painting are not as ugly as the two examples shown below, but the phenomenon is relatively frequent, not only on Ebay:
.
IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT PAINTING:
..
There are two types of painting:
1) The first type of painting (good painting, see coin #1) consists in the application of a light layer of painting in the background in order to enhance the engraven reliefs (inscriptions & patterns). It is a normal restoration work which is very usefull to well understand what is depicted on the coins. Also, when professionally done, this technique increases the eye appeal and enhances the aesthetical and artistical qualities of a coin. This type of painting was approved by Prof. Meshorer.
2) The second type of painting (bad painting, see coin #2) consists in adding letters or patterns that were originally missing on the coin (arrows). This kind of painting is made to fool collectors or dealers and is definitely not acceptable.
...
The coin #3a shows another interesting example of bad painting: the top of the letters has been added by painting from 8:00 to 1:00. There is no relief.
The coin #3b is a simulation showing what coin 3a looked like before painting.
....
Sometimes, the bad painting is limited to a very small section. The coins #4 and 5 are specimens where a single letter only has been added.
..
Otherwise, there is no question that good cleaning and good painting are essentials:
Coin #6a has been sold in 2004 by a dealer (Ebay #2239096813) in its original state.
Coin #6b is the same specimen as #6a, but sold by another dealer in 2007 (#104), after cleaning and good painting.
Good painting only highlights the already existing patterns: A poor coin will remain a poor coin even after good painting. Only bad painting tries to 'invent' missing patterns in order to fool collectors or dealers.
.
..
On the same subject, read: "Comments on Tooling, Smoothing and Numismatic Conservation" by D. Hendin (The Celator, July 2006)
..
3. EVEN THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS COMPANIES
CAN MAKE MISTAKES!
.
During my researches, I sometimes find fakes, tooled or bad painted coins - not explicitly mentioned in the coin description - that are sold by prestigious numismatic companies. Twelve examples are shown hereafter. Fortunately, this phenomenon is not frequent, and it definitely does not question the integrity and professionalism of these companies:
...
.
.....
4. ATTRIBUTION ERROR BY AN AUTHENTICATING
& GRADING COMPANY:
..
Even the 'encapsulators' can make (big) mistakes!
.
....
5. HIGH DEFINITION RIDDLE:
..
About the extremely rare year 5 shekels of the Jewish War, Alan Walker (Leu Numismatics) wrote in 2003: "(...) Then there is the famous, and somewhat controversial, Baldwin/London group, which ostensibly derives from an otherwise unknown 19th century hoard: one piece has been in the British Museum since shortly after the coins first appeared, and the others reposed in the forgery trays (!) of the famous firm of Baldwin’s until they were rehabilitated in the early 1980s"
See the high definition pictures hereafter: The coin at top is the reverse of a genuine year 2 shekel as the coin at bottom is the reverse of a 'London Group' year 5 shekel. The question is still open: Are the coins of the London Group fakes? One thing is sure: in auctions, a London Group specimen can reach $50.000-60,000 as a regular year 5 shekel is two times more.
....
