Is this from China?

[Chrissybe]

Anyone know what this is and how much it's worth?

[ScottO]

yes its chinese.

only coin i can think of, is the 1934 communist army silver dollor, better check if its authentic though

[Chrissybe]

Think I have found it, it's the exact same

szechuan-shensi soviet 1934

 

 

My son-in-law has inherited coins and things and we are unsure of any of the value

[satootoko]

With anything from China, especially something as scarce as your example, my first step would be checking the weight.

 

Accurate attribution requires a look at the reverse, where the stars at 3:00 and 9:00 come in half a dozen distinct varieties.

 

Using the western date, written in the traditional right to left Chinese characters- 年四三九一- is a highly unusual, if not unique, design characteristic

[Chrissybe]

Here's the back

[Chrissybe]

With anything from China, especially something as scarce as your example, my first step would be checking the weight.

 

Accurate attribution requires a look at the reverse, where the stars at 3:00 and 9:00 come in half a dozen distinct varieties.

 

Using the western date, written in the traditional right to left Chinese characters- 年四三九一- is a highly unusual, if not unique, design characteristic

 

 

just weighed it it's 383.3 grams

[ccg]

From the pictures alone, and especially the "yuan" character, I would say that this is a relatively modern base metal cast counterfeit that's been cleaned.

 

Although many early Communist issues were crude, the "look" of this piece is more in line with those of modern pieces.

[Chrissybe]

From the pictures alone, and especially the "yuan" character, I would say that this is a relatively modern base metal cast counterfeit that's been cleaned.

 

Although many early Communist issues were crude, the "look" of this piece is more in line with those of modern pieces.

 

How modern is modern? As my son-in-law's father had this for over 40 years and he belived it to be minted in 1934

[ccg]

The most commonly encountered modern fakes are from the last 20 years or so. However, AFAIK there have been fakes (generally made for the souvenir market rather than the coin collectors; market) since at least the 1970s.

 

One particular issue with your piece is that the colour is more of a gunmetal / nickel grey rather than a white (or toned) silver colour.

 

Here's some genuine pieces:

http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/6236389

http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_det...050033&sid=

 

(slightly different yuan character)

http://www.bowersandmerena.com/auctions/lo...&LotNo=5390

[ccg]

just weighed it it's 383.3 grams

 

I'm assuming that it's 383 grains, which would be 24.8 grams.

 

Generally, Chinese silver dollars should be 26.8 grams.

 

Given that your piece is about 8% underweight, and that nickel and copper are both lighter metals than silver, I am 99% convinced that your piece is not genuine, regretfully.

[Chrissybe]

The most commonly encountered modern fakes are from the last 20 years or so. However, AFAIK there have been fakes (generally made for the souvenir market rather than the coin collectors; market) since at least the 1970s.

 

One particular issue with your piece is that the colour is more of a gunmetal / nickel grey rather than a white (or toned) silver colour.

 

Here's some genuine pieces:

http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/6236389

http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_det...050033&sid=

 

(slightly different yuan character)

http://www.bowersandmerena.com/auctions/lo...&LotNo=5390

 

It must be my rubbish photography as it's the exact same as the 1st one and as my son-in-law's dad had it in his collection since the late 50's early 60's then I would suspect it to be genuine, has anyone else any thoughts?

 

I will try and get a better clearer photo

[Saor Alba]

Because these coins were recognised as rare early on, they were some of the first Chinese coins being faked, probably as early as the 1960s. They were likely done in China itself, then filtered out through Hong Kong into the world market. Of course then there was an interest in them, especially the examples with crude hammers and sickles and the ones that had crude renditions of Vladimir Lenin. The original coins were in silver, which was a selling point for joining the communist army - they paid you in silver coin whereas the Nationalists under Chang Kai Sek paid their soldiers in paper money that lost value. Of course the faked coins were almost never created in silver.

[Chrissybe]

Because these coins were recognised as rare early on, they were some of the first Chinese coins being faked, probably as early as the 1960s. They were likely done in China itself, then filtered out through Hong Kong into the world market. Of course then there was an interest in them, especially the examples with crude hammers and sickles and the ones that had crude renditions of Vladimir Lenin. The original coins were in silver, which was a selling point for joining the communist army - they paid you in silver coin whereas the Nationalists under Chang Kai Sek paid their soldiers in paper money that lost value. Of course the faked coins were almost never created in silver.

 

 

Thanks - how can I find out if it is silver or not? if it is a fake is it worth anything?

[satootoko]

how can I find out if it is silver or not?

You already have! The weight is far too low for a .900 or better silver coin of that size, and fakes are virtually never made with low grade silver.

 

As a further confirmation, do a specific gravity test (Google for "how to").

[Chrissybe]

You already have! The weight is far too low for a .900 or better silver coin of that size, and fakes are virtually never made with low grade silver.

 

As a further confirmation, do a specific gravity test (Google for "how to").

 

I just go my husband to weight it correctly on his reloading scales as these are accurate rather than my kitchen scales and it came out at 419.3 grains, i'll try the gravity test once I read how

 

Cheers