Angie sent us this picture of her 1757 coin. It looks like a Russian 5 kopeks with the swirly monogram of Elizabeth the Great. There is a similar coin at this CoinQuest link. The reverse bears resemblance to a Siberian issue, but the resemblance is not strong.

Stumped, we inquired at Numismat.ru in Moscow. Igor Lavruk was kind enough to reply. Not one to mince words, Igor said:

'This coin is fake.'

So that settles it. Angie owns a counterfeit Russian coin and its value is zero.

This experience points out one of the major pitfalls to successful coin collecting: authentication. Professional authenticators make their livings identifying and detecting counterfeit collectibles. Over the past 10 years or so, the influx of counterfeit rare coins has been overwhelming. Only with vast experience can a collector be sure his or her coins are genuine. A click to CoinQuest's Counterfeit Page will sober most aspiring collectors. The only real solution to this problem is to deal with high quality, proven reputable coin dealers. Do not invest significant money in a coin that you are not sure is genuine.