Encrustrations on some of my fake Gold coins

[Din X]

Encrustrations on Irene transfer die fake.

[Din X]

Celtic fake "Hofoldinger Forst", modern hand cut dies with its encrustrations.

[Din X]

Syracuse  transfer die fake with encrustrations

[Din X]

Encrustrations on a Rhodes cast fake

[Din X]

Encrustrations on transfer die fake Solidi

[Din X]

Encrustrations on an old fake Denarius of Cigoi showing Matidia

[djmacdo]

As always, very impressive!  I never trust statements that forgers cannot do something because they then show that they can do so.

[Molinari]

Very interesting--thank you for providing this.  Do you think these would show evidence of artifical manipulation (glue, etc.) if subjected to the same sort of tests as the Sponsian coins, or was it achieved through heat treatment?

[Din X]

The problem is that I do not even know what the encrustrations are, there is something white which is clearly wax on some of them and then we have this brown, black, red encrustrations and almost transparent encrustrations.
Most can be removed easily with a finger nail!
These encrustrations on many fake gold coins look very similar although they are from different times and from workshops/forgers, I guess they are using same or similar technique.
I would like to know if the encrustrations on the Sponsian can be removed with a finger nail, that it would speak very much against authenticity.
Real encrustrations should be hard and stick there so much that you need chemicals or a scalpel to remove them. (See for example the real encrustrations on authentic Ephesos and Magnesia ad Maeandrum gold staters from the recent hoard, I have a Magnesia ad Maeandrum gold stater and you can not remove the encrustrations without violence or strong chemistry so I haven´t dared to think about it.
Of course on fakes can be hard encrustrations too but they are more sophisticated and so rarer.

Some gold Beirut fakes seem to have good encrustrations see for example the transfer die fake hoard" Each emperor in the hoard came from the same dies."

 IBSCC Bulletin on Counterfeits BOCS Vol 20 No.1 1995 Page 29 Fig 10b

http://forgerynetwork.com/asset.aspx?id=q01zICFl9HQ=

http://forgerynetwork.com/asset.aspx?id=KmVAhMqv~x~lk=

http://forgerynetwork.com/asset.aspx?id=LZphWZMAIoU=

http://forgerynetwork.com/asset.aspx?id=Pqpmt/JJogE=

and so on

[Hydatius]

Very interesting--thank you for providing this.

I second those comments. Fascinating.
Richard

[n.igma]

I suspect encrustations on silver and gold might also be be manufactured exploiting the galvanic potential differences between metals in contact. I inadvertently placed an assortment of silver and bronze ancients in a Japanese cast iron bowl and after a few months the different galvanic potential of the metal in this configuration in a very humid climate saw spots of what appeared to be copper and iron mobilized in an encrustation like form to the silver at points of contact. Far from my expertise, and I haven't given much thought to the possibility beyond this accident, but I am sure others must be aware of the possibility and its potential utility in manufacturing fake encrustations. We see this galvanic effects on coins from some ancient mixed bronze and silver hoards. I see no reason why it could not be employed to make convincing artificial encrustations.

[Ken W2]

Pardon if I’m misunderstanding, but in some areas it simply looks like copper spotting from poor alloying.  In others it looks different, like copper spotting on steroids.  Are you saying the forgers did something to enhance the copper spotting? Could it be that the alloy included traces iron or other metals that when exposed to an environment, natural or artificial, produced these results?

[Din X]

Here encrustrations on a AV Quinar showing Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius.
It is a fantasy coin made by Gian Giacomo Bonzagni (called Parmagiano) who lived 1507-1565.

What is interesting is that so many authentic and fake gold coins with very old pedigree show such red or brown or black encrustrations and remains of wax.
I think that this encrustrations were not there at the beginning and are resulting from dust and conservation chemicals and wax.