N° 539 | Livonia Riga 1 Solidus 1648 Suceava Counterfeit

Haljak II# 1604, N#185961; Copper; Imitating Christina; The exact lettering of the surrounding legend may vary. In 1662, under the reign of Eustratie Dabija (1661-1665), the Suceava mint was re-opened in Moldavia (modern-day Romania). With the help of mintmaster Tito Livio Burattini, the mint struck many counterfeits of Livonian solidus pieces. Some say these counterfeits were used as a way to ruin the Livonian economy; others say they were struck to help Moldavia get out of its financial crisis. Either way, these counterfeits were continually produced even after Eustratie Dabija's death, spanning over the reigns of George Ducas (1665-1666), Iliaş Alexandru (1666-1668), and the second reign of George Ducas (1668-1672) as well. These coins differ from the original pieces in a few ways: they appear much more coppery (either made of copper or very low-quality billon, depending on the source), they typically (but not always) have fictitious dates, and they are often much cruder than the originals. Even so, these forgeries are still very collectable, and are usually worth more than the real pieces; VF