A Really Obvious Fake 1914 London Mint Gold Sovereign

[LawrenceChard]

A Really Obvious Fake 1914 London Mint Gold Sovereign

I see a lot of fake sovereigns, but this one is a particularly bad example, although in a way that makes it a good starting point for those who want to be able to tell the difference.

Rather than me list what is wrong with it, it might be easier to invite everyone to spot anything that is right with it.

From the photos, I might expect it to be underweight, and made of brass, but:

The weight is to high at 8.0304 grams compared with 7.98805 grams specification.

The gold content is not as low as I would have expected.

The cadmium content is very unusual.

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[modofantasma]

It looks more like it's been cast than minted from here 

[LawrenceChard]

51 minutes ago, modofantasma said:

It looks more like it's been cast than minted from here 

I agree!

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[modofantasma]

Would it pass a sigma test?

[LawrenceChard]

1 hour ago, modofantasma said:

Would it pass a sigma test?

Probably not, but I have not had time to check!

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[sixgun]

What is the point?

There is a goodly amount of gold in the object, i dare not say coin, so why make a replica which is as god awful bad as that?
It has an interest value - it even has a collector value as there will be those who collect fake sovereigns but i doubt this specimen was made for that market. It was probably made to pay for something on a dark night or amongst a lot more coins. 

[LawrenceChard]

3 hours ago, sixgun said:

What is the point?

There is a goodly amount of gold in the object, i dare not say coin, so why make a replica which is as god awful bad as that?
It has an interest value - it even has a collector value as there will be those who collect fake sovereigns but i doubt this specimen was made for that market. It was probably made to pay for something on a dark night or amongst a lot more coins. 

Probably to go into a piece of jewellery.

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[Arcadian]

A quick Google shows that late Victorian jewellery could be made from green gold, using cadmium and silver.  I wonder if a naughty apprentice thought he could make a few bob melting down old scrap jewellery and casting a coin instead, and probably shortening his life-span due to toxic fumes during the melting phase.