1806 Draped Bust Quarter...Counterfeit????

[grasshopper]

Found this coin today at an 1850's home (supposedly there was an older homesite on the property).

First thought when I pulled it out was a token, it was really gross and couldn't see any details.

Cleaned it a bit more and realized it was a US 1806 Draped Bust quarter. Scratched like no coin I've seen before.

I was skeptical...

First, the dirt wasn't cleaning off nicely like most silver coins. Secondly, I just weighed it after getting home and the scale says 5.5 grams. Online says it should be 6.74 grams.

Edit: forgot to mention it rings up a 60 on the deus, much lower than I'd expect for a silver quarter


Can any experts help me out here? If anything, seems like it might be an old counterfeit.....

(the pics are sideways on the preview but I noticed if you expand them they show right side up. Not sure why this is an issue..)

 

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[Shiloh]

Counterfeit

 

[GaRebel1861]

It might be counterfeit but, it’s a very cool find. Heck, I might even take that over a real one! You’ve got a keeper there.

 

[frazdad]

That hole wouldn't effect the weight that much. FAKE

 

[Whyme]

Real or fake it's an awesome find!

 

[against the wind]

Heartbreaker but still a cool find,,
Congratulations

 

[A2coins]

nice

 

[Digger RJ]

Nice!!! Congrats!!!'

 

[Argentium]

If it is a fake it's likely an early fake - I'm not convinced either way - but the wear and tear seems to be honest .

 

[Carolina Tom]

How does it ring up? Is it high like a silver quarter, or lower like a pot metal fake. What about a seam around the edge. Does it make the ringing sound when dropped?

It would be so cool if it were real... but alas, I fear not...

 

[Rookster]

I agree,it's still a great find.Congrats.

 

[grasshopper]

How does it ring up? Is it high like a silver quarter, or lower like a pot metal fake. What about a seam around the edge. Does it make the ringing sound when dropped?

It would be so cool if it were real... but alas, I fear not...

Yeah, forgot to mention that in my post. Rings a 60 on the deus, I would expect a silver quarter to be 90+

 

[Trezurehunter]

What a neat find. I would love to find a counterfeit coin.

 

[Plumbata]

Very interesting find, hopefully the next one is the genuine article!

With the lower density/weight i'd assume it was cast out of some sort of Tin alloy, like Britannia metal or Pewter.

 

[dirtlooter]

still a very cool find, still part of our history. and guess what, we are still getting scammed even today!

 

[paleomaxx]

That's super cool! Lately I've been finding a lot of contemporary pewter counterfeits of silver coins in our area. So far I've found a fake DB half, capped bust half, and one that's unidentifiable. Yours is in far better condition that the ones I've found, but it seems that there was a solid counterfeit industry up here in the early 1800's!

 

[Rubka888]

That is a great find even though it isn't real. Maybe someone tried to use it and the other person was skeptical and decided to drill a hole in it? That would be akward.. Whoever made it did a good job.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

That is a really nice find! The coin looks a bit clipped, but I'm not sure that would account for the weight loss. Is the 60 VID out of the ground testing? Either way I think you have a very interesting find!

Congratulation!

 

[Scrappy]

Actually it looks like a contemporary counterfeit, and a killer find that shouldn’t be dismissed.
Certainly a great early counterfeit that was well made. A lot of counterfeits of that era was silver plated or silver washed copper, but yours looks more like a billon material. I’m not entirely convinced either - there’s always an off-chance it could be very worn, although 1-1/4 grams is quite substantial. What’s catching my eye is the sharpness of the details. I wish I could zoom in on your pictures but my phone isn’t allowing me.

And sometimes crust does attach to old silver. A friend of mine found an encrusted 8 reales in the woods once that looked counterfeit due to the impossible brown crust on it. After much cleaning it was a 1750’s 8 reales Spanish coin.

And as far a vdi - it’s not always reliable, even on a Deus. Did you scan it again out of the hole to make sure it didn’t ring higher? There always a chance it was on edge.

 

[toasted]

Very interesting and cool find for sure. If it was a contemporary fake then it looks to have been a very good one