Coin and Paper Money Collecting/1721? coin found

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Expert: - 2/10/2010


Question

front of coin
Hi Dmitry- I found this coin on the floor of my bedroom and looking for some identification. Its about the size of a us quarter. However is appears to be copper or bronze. a king on the front with a beard, 16 dots around the top 3/4, the dnumeras on the right appear to be 1721. the rear of the coin depicts a 3 mast ship, no numerals or writing. photo attached of the front. thanks so much, jen Thomas

Answer
Hi Jen,
This is a modern "fantasy" token. It is referred to as a "fantasy" because there are no such genuine coins that have this design. If there were, it would be called a novelty replica or counterfeit.
I can tell for sure that this item is not more than 50 years old. It appears to be brass, with a painted on patina to make it look dark from age.
The design is very crude and typical for such novelty coins. Even in 1721 the way coins were made would have been to a higher standard.
I'm afraid something like this would not have a collectible value. I apologize that it is not what you expected.
Thanks for the question! =)

Dmitry Livshits

Expertise

My specialty is world coins from the 18th to 20th centuries, primarily non-US foreign coins and related areas such as errors and exonumia (tokens, medals, etc.). I can answer questions relating to identification, grading, selling, preservation and evaluation of such items. In addition to catalog value, I can give you the practical market value and trends for specific types of coins. I will also take questions regarding counterfeits (both modern and antique) and on how to identify them. I am NOT knowledgeable in paper money/banknotes, ancient or "shipwreck" coins. Thank you.

Experience

Collector of world coins since early childhood. Access to a variety of auction records and reference material. You can also find me on Facebook.

Education/Credentials
A.S. in Psychology (2006), B.A. in Forensic Psychology (2008), M.A. in Forensic Psychology (2011).

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