Australia 2005 Genuine $2
Australia 2003 Counterfeit $2
These counterfeit two dollar coins surfaced in change a few years ago now, around mid 2005. Certainly a good dodgy coin which on passing the everyday Joe wouldn’t look twice at. But those in the know can pick them a mile away, they are so obviously unauthorised counterfeit copies that it’s laughable.
The most notable points are the crudeness of the designs. Her majesties hair and the Aboriginals beard just curl and brush the wrong way. The counterfeit versions have a weak strike, are missing important details altogether and just look plain wrong. On the obverse of the counterfeit coin notice the legends are slightly misaligned. The “EL” of Elizabeth extends too far down HM’s neck. The coins themselves sound and feel different to genuine coins and are underweight.
It seems interesting that if anyone were going to make worthless copies of currency and pass it off an genuine then surely they would choose to do so with something larger, say, 50 or 100 dollar notes. If they chose to crudely copy our two dollar coin then for sure there will be many of them circulating unknowingly throughout the country to make it worthwhile for the offender.
If you find yourself picking out one of these illegal copies then it’s best to hand it in to the authorities. It is illegal to pass these along, use them to purchase or trade them as currency.
