Hi all, I'm new here so I'm very sorry if this is in the wrong forum...

I used to collect coins when I was younger, and I can't remember how, but I managed to get a coin that's very very odd... I have no idea where its from, how old it is, what its made of, and what its worth.

Here are the pictures of the front and back:


This is the back... I *think*. I've been told this looks like a Spanish coat of arms.


This looks like a bird with arrow shafts as wings... yeah...

OK, other random stuff... I've been told that the coin looks like its made of copper. Also, the writing around the sides is the weirdest part... it looks like Hebrew or Greek, but that's my very unprofessional opinion lol.

Any thoughts are very welcome!!!

Moved to World forum for more exposure. -Tiff And welcome aboard!

Looks like a promotional giveaway type cast copy coin/token.

Thanks Tiff!

ccg- that's definetely a possibility. But if it was a giveaway, my sister would most likely have the same one, because when we were younger we basically never left each other's sides... also, would a promotional giveaway thingy put so much attention on the imperfections? (such as the darker spots and lighter ones, and the unevenness of some of the designs)

I'm not trying to challenge your views, so I'm sorry if I sound like it >.< I'm just trying to figure this out ^_^;

This is what it's supposed to be - Spanish reale from the late 1400's Click Here But they were not struck in copper - and your coin does appear to be copper.

So I must agree that it is a replica, counterfeit or token patterned after the real thing.

What I know about mexican coinage you could probably write on the back of a postage stamp, but I got a couple of pieces like that a few years ago. One I managed to trace to some outlandish province of Mexico during some revolution or another. The other one (like the one here) I passed over thinking `one day when I have more time on my hands than I know what to with'........

replica im sure....but nice coin none the less,im a sucker for copper coinage of any type...welcome to the forums...

I've seen those several times before and Ian is right, replica of a Spanish Reale of Ferdinand and Isabella. Usually seen in copper, occasionally silver plated.

sry, just wondering... how do you guys know its a replica/fake?

when it a) mimics a known coin, but is made from a metal that the genuine coin is NOT known for and it does not match any other known coin THENone can (relatively) safely say that is not a coin.

To me a `fake' is something that has been made to pass as genuine. Many fakes mimic coins made with precious metals. That is, they are made from base metal with a thin plating of gold or silver. Many fakes didn't become `obvious' until the plating wore exposing the base metal beneath. There's a whole subject area there.

Wasn't there a period of time when the French mints used platinum and gold plated them? Or was it done by some counterfeiters?

Indeed, forgeries exist of the french gold 10 and 20 francs that were made with a platinum core. Of course this was at a time when platinum was much cheaper than gold.
Strange how life's little quirks play out at times.
Such forgeries are now literally worth twice their weight in gold (bullion wise) and a heck of a lot more besides to collectors of such pieces.