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Coin and Paper Money Collecting/old coin with star of David

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Expert: - 1/8/2011


Question

morocco coin
Hi, I bought this coin in the streets of Morocco while on shore leave in the Navy. Can you tell me what it's called, how old, what it's made of, what do the symbols mean, ect? It has symbols on the back with the number 120 or 126 (worn down) and the star of David on the front with beveled edges. It's the same size as a penny. Thanks, Dale

Answer
Hi Dale,
This coin is local to where you purchased it.
It's an early Moroccan "falus" coin, made from bronze cast in a mold. The weight would determine the exact denomination of how many "falus" it is. All the denominations had similar designs, which were often irregular due to the crude nature of these early coins. Unfortunately it appears the last digit of the date is completely obliterated, again a common occurrence on these crude coins. It would be an AH1260's date, which is a Hijri date from the Islamic calendar. That would put the coin from the early 1840's to 1851 or so by our Gregorian calendar.
These coins are generally popular with collectors, and your coin is in pretty good shape. However, without an exact readable date it would be worth just a few dollars.
The Star of David is seen on quite a few African coins, even into the 1950's, as the early Hebrews migrated down through the Sinai Peninsula and into modern day Ethiopia during biblical times.
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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