California Fractional Gold coin

[jhen999]

I found this coin the other day, the first thing i thought was its a gold coin, and it looks to be, it rang up on the e-trac as 12-23 which is in the gold range, so i did a little research on it and it turns out its what is called a California Fractional gold coin, 1854 1/2 dollar, Its the first time i have heard of that kind of coin, and i am not sure if its real or not, i guess there were a lot fake ones made from the early 1900 tell the 1930,s....what do you think first gold coin or not? alot of them were made 9 k or 10 k gold weight

 

[Geochem]

Very nice find!

 

[galenrog]

This is NOT a fractional gold coin. It is a tourist token. One thing to look for on a genuine example are the words "Dollar", "DOL", "DOLL", or in a few cases, "CENTS". This type of token is frequently marketed as a fractional gold coin, however. This type of item can be bought today by the thousands. Yes, they are still made today.

The composition can vary widely. From common brass, to low gold alloy. I am guessing yours is common yellow brass, since that is what most are made of.

 

[Terry Soloman]

I think it is - a great find! Do you have a local coin or jewelry shop that can look at it? That is a Banner find - WOW!

Just read Galenrog's response - bummer! Hope it's real, but still a neat find.

 

[Mackaydon]

My money is on it being a brass token produced in the 1970s.
Don.......

 

[jhen999]

I was not sure about the coin, I am not sure if its brass ether , brass reads alot higher on the e-trac than 23..most of the time brass comes in around 47-48...i did read where the coins with the bear on the back were fake, but then again i saw were some of were made with the bear...so who knows...even if its fake or a token, those are worth $20 to $60...I didnt even know these kind of coins were made and i have lived in California for 65 years.....first one i have ever seen or heard of.

 

[NHBandit]

Not real. Sorry

 

[ScubaDetector]

It is a token for sure. unfortunately. Real ones had Cents or Dollars on them not just 1/2.

Good luck finding a real one. You will have some serious dollars as not many survived.

 

[smokeythecat]

When I get stumped I take my stuff to a coin dealer. Have two in town I trust to tell me the truth.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I DO NOT like the color, that tells me it is brass = Sorry.....

 

[Scrappy]

I've had a lot of real and fake finds in my detecting adventures. It's the initial excitement of digging it that I always judge a find by...

Cheers.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Congratualtions on the Killer coin find!

 

[trapperart]

Real or not congrats