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Phillip III Arrhidaeus

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Virgil H:
I have had this coin a long time and I have no reason to doubt it. I was looking at it, taking photos for my gallery and decided to look it up on Pella. Mine is AR 28mm-29mm, so a larger size on the range, but mine is only 14.4 grams. Weight is on low side. The range in Pella is 15.08 grams to just over 17 grams. I just wanted to check here to see what you think. This is Price P186. Babylon mint. Maybe the test cut has an impact here, but that cut isn't huge. I have also seen wide weight variations in other coins, so just wanted some other opinions.

Thanks,
Virgil

Altamura:
Could it be a fourrée?
On the reverse you have this black hole in the middle and some damages near the edge at about five and six o'clock looking as if some parts of a plating had detached there.

Regards

Altamura

Virgil H:
Hmm, I never thought of that. I have no experience with fourees, so I don't know. It isn't super obvious to me if it is. That spot on the back is definitely something I have wondered about. Also, this coin is also, to me, a bit unnatural looking, but I have no other silver coins that size and with the relief this one has. The photo doesn't really convey that. It is a pretty coin. I just am not sure how to tell if it is plated, if it is, that has held up well over the centuries, assuming it is actually ancient. Honestly, this is one coin I have always thought might look to good to be true. But, like I said, I have no experience with coins this size with this level of detail. I realize I haven't said very much here. This is a coin I have looked at a lot and wondered about. And I have nothing I can compare it to in my collection. LOL.

Thanks,
Virgil

Curtis JJ:
If this is a fourree (that would explain weight and some details on reverse), I would suspect the obverse test cut was one of the "fake test cuts" placed there by the forgers before it was plated. (Of course, it is possible for a test cut to fail to break the plating.) I know the phenomenon of "fake test cuts" is well documented for Athens tetradrachms:

From CNG [acs Link]
 
But I've never seen it on an Alexander/Philip III tetradrachm. That would be a really cool discovery, in my opinion.

The question for me: did the forgers cut the cores manually, then plate them, or was the cut actually part of the original die (which would be technically quite impressive!). I'm having trouble finding them with keyword searches, but i had the impression that I'd seen a couple of the owls that looked similar enough to be from the same dies, but I could be imagining that part....

Virgil H:
Curtis,

Those are some interesting comments, I had never thought of test cuts being part of a forgery. I think this coin might be one that someone needs to see in person. I am going to look at it under the microscope and see if I can see anything else. Thanks.

Virgil

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