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includes it in his list at the end of the king's reign, without, however, attempting to note any coins to which it is attached. In this respect he has followed Mr. Hawkins, who has done likewise in his work on the silver coins of England.

H. MONTAGUu.

ALTERATION OF AN AMERICAN DOLLAR.-As it may prove of some service to the numismatic world generally, I consider it a duty to place before them particulars of a very clever species of fabrication that is now going the round, to the detriment of collectors of American coins. The knowledge I have acquired about the subject in question I am sorry though not unwilling to own has been gained by bitter experience, but if it should be the means of preventing others from being deceived, or of bringing to light and exposing the perpetrator of this system of fraud, who, I am told, is still carrying on his nefarious trade in the United States, it will not have been gained in vain.

The coin now before the Numismatic Society is a United States dollar, probably of 1801 (as this date would, perhaps, be the easiest to alter to 1804), of which the last figure of original date has been entirely effaced, and a new figure "4" laid on with silver solder, in such a perfect and ingenious manner as to deceive even when submitted to a powerful lens.

The dollar of 1804, as perhaps few but Americans are aware, is the rara avis amongst dollars, and consequently, as its great rarity consists only in its date and a trifling variety of detail, which I mention later on, there is, perhaps, a great inducement to counterfeit it by means of other dollars of less rarity but of similar type. The forger effects his work by a simple alteration of the last figure of the date, relying on the other minute differences (which are only known to a few) escaping notice.

This altered piece I purchased of an American, who I have since suspected was not as ignorant of its character as he appeared to be; and I may warn collectors of American coins over here that it will be advisable in future not to purchase any great American rarity unless the vendor is well known to them, or they have some acquaintance with this clever process of alteration. This identical coin (since I acquired it) has been taken to the United States mint for the opinion of the authorities there, and they pronounced it a "Dollar altered to 1804; last figure of original date removed, and a clean-cut 4 in

serted in its stead;" but as I was not quite satisfied with this decision without a sufficiently severe test being applied to the coin, I took it to the Royal Mint, and had it subjected to the heat of a furnace (but not to white heat), with the result that it confirmed the opinion of the United States mint authorities so far that it exposed the borax used with the hard solder, and fused the greater part of the inserted figure, but left the original part of the date intact; thus clearly showing that the metal composing the alteration was not of the same standard as the original. As a general rule the solder should always be easier of fusion than the metal to which it is to be attached, and care is also taken that the solder, which for silver is usually prepared from equal parts of silver and brass, and made easier of fusion by the admixture of one-sixteenth of zine, is as far as possible of the same colour as the metal that is to be soldered.

The whiteness of the coin now before the Society of course is the result of the furnace-heat, as before the test it had the tone of an ordinary silver coin in circulation.

Coins with altered dates are not always the work of a forger, as there are pieces known as "Mint Alterations" in the American, English, and other series; but in these cases the figure is always struck on the coin, and generally over the original date in such a manner that the alteration may be seen, whereas a fabricated date is generally concocted in such a way that it may not be visible to the naked eye.

Mint alterations in the English series occur under Elizabeth, James I., Charles I., the Commonwealth, and at various periods of the milled series; and under the Commonwealth there exist many fabrications of rare dates, but the ingenuity displayed on the coins of this period, though not by any means to be despised in some instances, yet will not bear comparison with this more recent masterpiece of American ability.

I may state, as a guide to collectors over here, that I am informed on good authority that in the genuine 1804 dollar the first figure of date touches the curl under the bust of Liberty, and the last letter of LIBERTY touches the star next to it.

The extreme rarity of this coin is inexplicable, as, although the number coined (19.500) was small in comparison with other years, yet one would think it was sufficiently large to allow a greater number of them to be in existence than there actually is, unless the greater bulk of them were melted down. However, as the Bushnell and one or two other famous American collections did not contain a specimen, there are at least some

grounds for the high premium it commands in the United States, which is no less than 600 dollars, or over £100 in English money.

I have since seen another altered dollar of 1804, in the possession of an American, who kindly allowed me to compare it with my own specimen, and as it was from a different die, there is no doubt that dollars of more than one date are used to effect this alteration.

If, as I am led to believe, all United States current dollars from the earliest period are still legal tender, then surely this is distinctly an offence against the Coinage Act, and as such could be made the subject of a Government inquiry, and the ultimate prosecution of the offender.

The English Act (24 & 25 Vict., cap. 99, sec. 16) on this subject says, "Whosoever shall deface any of the Queen's current gold, silver, or copper coin by stamping thereon any names or words, whether such coin shall or shall not be thereby diminished or lightened, shall in England and Ireland be guilty of a misdemeanour, and in Scotland of a crime and offence, and being convicted thereof, shall be liable, at the discretion of the Court, to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding one year, with or without hard labour." From this it will be seen that any person effecting any alteration on her Majesty's current coin would be liable to prosecution under the said Act.

There are many Americans who know of the manufacture of these altered coins, and one from whom I had a visit even knew the fabricator's name, but considered himself bound not to divulge it; so if there is a similar law to our own in the United States, there should be no difficulty for the American Government putting a stop to this defacement of their current coin, which if persisted in will make the pursuit of American numismatics a very dangerous one, and leave no inducement to amateurs in the old country to collect the rare moneys of the great Republic on the other side of the Atlantic.

WM. J. WEBSTER.

RECENT SALE OF COINS.-On the 6th to the 8th of July, Messrs. Sotheby, Wilkinson and Hodge, of Wellington Street, sold the collection of Anglo-Saxon and English coins belonging to the late Major W. Stewart Thorburn, who is known to numismatists as the author of the Guide to the Coins of Great Britain and Ireland. From the fact also that many of the specimens in Major Thorburn's collection are referred to and described in

Kenyon's works on the gold and silver evitares of Englanla large number of buyers were present at the sale, and exceptional prices were in many cases reaised, angst which may be noticed the following:—A London penny of Alfred, # 5: another of Hrad L. 22129s: others of We L. 21k each. Heavy groats of Elwari M., of London Mizi, £3 14s. Sovereign of Henry V. of thirty-seventh year. 419: another of third year of Edward VL, £18. ↑ Angel of Philip and Mary, £9 25. 61. Screreign of Elizabeth. 66 109. Man balk sovereign. £9 9s. Hammered crow. mm. 1, 44 10s. Thinyshilling piece of James L. £12 17s. 61.; and crown with rev. QVE DEVS, ke., £7 17s. 61 Tower crown, of 1645, of Charles L. £11 11s. Oxford pod piece of 1642. £15. The Inchiquin crown, £7 15s. Commonwealth crown of 1652,

£4 8s. Half-broad of Crommel. £325. Hammered halfrown of Charles II, without mark of value, £3 8s.; and shilling of same issue, £3 17. 61. Five-guinea piece of Anne, of 1705, £14 15s.; and her pattern halfpenny in copper, with bost on both sides, £9. Five-guinea piece of George L. of 1726, £14 15s. Proof crown of George II., of 1732, £11 5s.; and halfcrown of 1731. £8 15s. Pattern two-pound piece of George III., of 1820, by Fistrucci, rev. St. George and the Dragon, £18 15s.; pattern half-guinea, of 1764, by Tanner, rev. shield, £10 10s.; and pattern seven-shilling piece, by Yeo, rev. lion on crown, £410s. Pattern crown, sürer, of William IV., of 1831, by Wyon, £23. Pattern five-pound piece of Victoria, of 1839, by Wyon, £15 58. Proof sovereign and half-sovereign of 1880, £16 10s.; and proofs in gold of Maundy set of 1838, £21 15s. Pattern forin, 1548, by W. Wyon, in silver, £6 6s. Proof set, of 1545, of crown, halferown, shilling, and sixpence, £30, &c. The whole sale, consisting of 443 lots, realised £1,494 11s. 6d.

H. G.

SALE OF A CABINET OF SELECT GREEK SILVER COINS. (Sotheby's, 27 June-1 July, 1887).-We think it our duty, more especially in the interest of our foreign subscribers, to make some special comment on this extraordinary Sale. When the catalogue came into the hands of numismatists it was found to contain descriptions of numerous Greek coins, many of which were of the highest rarity and interest. On the strength of these descriptions more than one foreign numismatist gave, or was prepared to give, commissions for the sale, and several well-known collectors came from a distance to be present.

When the collection was examined at the sale-rooms it was found largely to consist of what may be described as the most astonishing assemblage of forgeries ever offered to the public. This was the opinion, openly expressed, of the representatives of the British Museum, of several experienced collectors of Greek coins, of members of the Numismatic Society and of all the principal English coin-dealers. It is, we think, to be regretted that, in view of this testimony, the heads of so eminent and fair-dealing a firm as that of Messrs. Sotheby, Wilkinson & Hodge did not see their way to stopping the sale, or at any rate to weeding out the whole of the forgeries. The sale catalogue, we must point out, gave (practically) no indication whatever that a large number of the best coins were false or doubtful. In the "Notice" prefixed to it the owner (who is described as 66 a zealous and hereditary amateur ") states, or allows the compiler of his catalogue to state, that the collection includes "very few specimens of which he doubts the authenticity, and that this "doubt, or more than doubt, will be found expressly stated" in the body of the catalogue. The doubts of the owner or the compiler seem to have arisen only in the case of some seven or eight coins in the whole collection, for to that number only is any note of warning appended. The owner concludes by commending the collection" to the careful personal examination of the intending purchaser, without obtruding any recommendation or authority whatever," and introduces a quotation from the catalogue of the historic Northwick Sale to the effect that purchasers must buy at their own risk, as a difference of opinion may arise as to the authenticity of some of the specimens. It is well known that few great collections are offered for sale which do not contain a doubtful specimen here and there. In such cases (as the Northwick Catalogue suggests) Caveat emptor. But when, as in the present instance, nearly all the best coins are false or doubtful, the intending purchaser may fairly look for something more than a general caution to be on his guard. We have no evidence to prove, and we do not suggest, that the owner of this collection offered it for sale well knowing that many of the coins were false. But it is clear that he has apparently during many years-been grievously imposed upon. If he be a member of the Numismatic Society of London he is earnestly requested to give his brother members all the information in his power as to the sources from which he obtained the spurious pieces. Fortunately, collectors easily remember the precise circumstances under which they obtain the rariora of their cabinets.

With regard to the sale itself, some of the genuine specimens

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