Challenge Coin: Authentic or Original

Posted on September 3, 2008
Filed Under Collecting Thoughts

In challenge coin collecting, coins can be changed such as epoxy removed or colors redone as time goes by. By having these modifications done you are changing the original intent of the product. When a coin is made it should be viewed as an original piece that has the same characteristics as the rest of the batch. If you mint 100 pieces they should all look entirely the same to have the title Authentic and Original. I think these two words hold the most important aspect of a coin besides the last remaining one…mint (meaning condition).

These three factors are similar to the triangle of fire where you need a fuel source, ignition, and oxygen to have a fire. In order to have a great coin you need Authenticity, Originality, and Great Condition. Obviously there will be more factors then this, but without even one of those factors being present you won’t have a coin worth anything. So this should be a fine basis to start out with to understand the worth or character of a coin. So let’s break these thoughts down even further.

When we talk about Authenticity we mean is it in fact minted by the same person as the original coin. For example if I go mint 100 pieces of the coin I just designed (this is a coin design never minted before), and then you come along six months later to copy my design and re-mint it then your coins are not authentic. They are a copy of the authentic coins and therefore are worth nothing, except to an unsuspecting new collector that wouldn’t know better. Ok, so I think we have the definition of authentic down.

Now the term original could be used in one of two ways, being the original or first born. We should reserve this word in the challenge coin field for true to form or as originally intended to be produced. Authenticity covers the first born part so with can now use the term Originality for the features that were minted on a coin when the first batch went to mint. A good example is a coin that may have had its epoxy redone or the colors stripped and repainted. When you modify a coin like this even if you put everything back the same way it now is not original. You either restarted the aging process or slighly increased the beauty past the other coins that were minted with it. You have redone the coin and it now has something the other coins minted with it does not have. This coin is still authentic; however, it’s not original.

Defining these terms are important in our field as we have no way to really talk about pieces sometimes because many of us don’t realize the terminology or the impact of coins worth, source, or process in keeping Authenticity and Originality. Hopefully this will shed some light on where you stand if one day you are thinking about having that $500 coin repainted or the epoxy refinished.

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