An “Old” 1799 Draped Bust Dollar – Jack Young’s Fun With Fakes

By Jack D. Young, Early American Coppers (EAC), and the Dark Side Group ……
 

Since I wrote my article on an ANA documented counterfeit 1799 dollar back in 2021, I’ve been on the lookout for another with no success.

The subject example of that short article was certified by a third-party grading service, but it was nevertheless shown to be a fake based on attribution points documented in a summary of counterfeit detection articles published in the the American Numismatic Association’s (ANA) The Numismatist from 1977 through 1982. “Counterfeit 1799 Bust Dollars” starts on page 93 of that collective summary.

But my luck changed this past week as I actually found two more examples!

The first example actually found me, as a dealer friend messaged me about one he had received from a client looking for help with a collection she had inherited. As soon as I saw it, my jaw dropped.

The coins are attribute as the 1799 BB-158 Draped Bust Dollar, with a series of cool die breaks unique to that variety. But as usual for these “copies”, matching marks exist that are not associated with any actual die state.

This particular example weighed the correct amount and scanned as 90% silver. I asked for edge images as well and added them to my combination image.

Comparing it to the example in the original article shows the major attribution matches.

OK, good match and not the same coin; from the ANA summary, these are the known attribution points:

One of the things that I found interesting is the latest example’s edge. It looks more modern.

The ANA examples were believed to have been created in the 1970s and were European in origin – to my knowledge, an unproven theory. There were no edge images in the summary except one showing an attribution point for them.

I found the second example of a counterfeit 1799 BB-158 Draped Bust Dollar the same evening just scrolling eBay as I often do. The first listing I saw under “Early Dollars” was this example nearing the end of the auction:

The listing was removed and the seller responded to me as follows:

So on a final note, I was able to review the subject example in hand and verify all of the ANA noted matching marks – including the edge marker!

And I added this one to the two ANA documented examples in one reference image (my example on the bottom):

Best,

—Jack

MORE Articles on Counterfeit Coins by Jack D. Young

* * *