WRL copy of denarius of Titus

This coin was sent in by a friend of the owner, who I took to be a detectorist. I was asked to provide a full ID and a valuation.

The coin bears the design and legends of a denarius of Titus as Caesar under Vespasian. On the obverse the legend reads T CAESAR IMP VESPASIANVS around the laureate head of Titus. On the reverse is a standing  eagle flanked by COS V. So far, so good.

Westair Reproductions copy

The porous surface points towards this coin being a cast copy. If confirmation were needed then it comes in the form of the initials – WRL – on the obverse, which stand for Westair Reproductions Ltd. This company has produced and marketed a very wide range of cast copies of Roman and other coins. The copies vary in quality, from fairly obvious casts to some that are very similar to the real thing. To avoid them being sold as the genuine article the copies are stamped with WRL. However, I have seen a few WRL copies that have had the initials removed.

Modern Copies

A number of different companies sell reproduction coins, some are marked as such but others aren’t. Most are cast copies but some are struck from dies and these can be very deceptive. Over recent years many fake Roman coins have been exported from Bulgaria and China seems to possess the skill to manufacture an ever increasing range of world coins. Fakes are becoming ever more convincing so do take care when buying and ensure your purchases come with a guarantee.    

Valuation

When I sent the friend of the owner a report on the coin he said the chap buys things from auctions. If that was the source for this coin let’s hope that he didn’t pay much for it.        

Valuation Service

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