They are
fake, but I prefer to think of them as replicas. The word "
fake" implies that they are (or might be) passed off as authentic, but if you don't present them to anyone as authentic, but always call them "replicas," why then you are not trying to fool anyone. Anybody who knows anything about
ancient coins would not mistake these as authentic.
One group of people that _sometimes_ collects replicas, fantasies or
forgeries is dealers. Dealers sometimes have a "black cabinet," a
collection of imitations from
cheap tourist
forgeries, on up to
forgeries that can fool professionals. Knowing what the
fakes look like helps them better understand what is authentic. Also if they own a forgery, it is not circulating in the market. On forumancientcoins, there is a page for
fakes, which is many ways the same thing as a "black cabinet." They give examples for people to look at and compare. So there are even people who are interested in even
cheap tourist
fakes, legitimately interested, not interested in
selling it to some unsuspecting novice, but interested in getting them out of circulation, and educating people about what they look like.
Fake Coins and Notorious Fake Sellers
