Only Mike Cladwell himself can confirm this.

My guess on how it got there:

1. original owner wanted to play a prank
2. a helper for Mike Cladwell slipped this heart picture through Mike's watchful eyes.

The second option is highly unlikely in my opinion.

I can understand the skepticism but now it's getting annoying.  I'm not trolling/pranking anyone.  And I don't like some of you discrediting my listing and devaluing my coin.

What you see pictured is what I received. After close examination I can say with conviction it's an error that occurred during the gold plating process.  It's electro plated and matches the tone and color of the BTC.  I would need to go to extreme lengths to fake something like this. The speck just happens to be heart shaped. I didn't notice it at first until placed my coins inside air-tights and went WTF?! When you purchase a roll they don't come in air-tights. Instead you receive them in some elongated pill shaped enclosure with 20 slots which splits open like a BBQ smoker.


I emailed Mike and asked him if there is something he can do to help me put your mind at ease. Perhaps I can send it off to him and he can examine it and sign off.  Anyway I will have some very high res shots soon.  Be patient. Don't be negative.

"someone could have electroplated it himself and it would look the same..."


Even Mike Cladwell cannot confirm or deny this as plausible. Would this not set a precedent where people can just electroplate some gold into these coins and claim it is legit? I am not saying OP would do that. I'm just saying if a heart shape can appear on these coins directly from the mint and the creator cannot confirm or deny it, what is stopping people from etching something on these coins and claim whatever?

Does anyone have a coin that has the "drops" as Mike stated?

Heres a thought.

Since it seems unlikely that one "drop" will make that heart and that two drops, as suggested by Casascius, seems a bit more plausible, would they not overlap each other under magnification?

@Charlie Thanks for posting.  I'm in a tough spot proving this.  Just think, how would you go about it if you were in my position?  I'm more interested in having some proof for myself, not for the sale.

@justbtcme Honestly I am not desperate for money to go through the trouble of faking this and risking my reputation. I'm well off and working on a quality bit-project centered around trust.  My info is public domain.  Not to mention I would only have one shot at faking this correctly or ruin the coin.

@blazedout thx for the support, but you'll never get it that cheap!

super high res pics are on the way!

For the record, I wasn't implying that bitmarket.io was trying to pull a scam.  I was simply stating that it is very possible to add this after the fact and perhaps not as difficult as you might think.  Since that is the case, without Mike saying, "Oh ya, I remember seeing one of those and thinking it was odd." or something along those lines, it cannot be proven.  

I believe it is probably genuine, but this sort of speculation isn't my cup of tea.

Ya, I think Im in this camp as well.

Although this is VERY cool, I couldn't justify paying a high price for this.

important thing is, is this heart etched right in or will it come off easy like a loose chunk.

I don't find it interesting. I find it incredibly fascinating and delightfully charming. If there's a keeper, this is it.

Also, wouldn't the pursuit of perfection be exponentially troublesome to attain?  Lets cut the bullshit, I'll offer a $2K bounty to anyone that can fake a defect like mine.  I'll put my money where my mouth is.  I'm curious to hear and see how difficult the process is, and if the colors and shape matches.  You can do it on a redeemed coin, and those don't come cheap either. You'll only have one shot to get it right. You'll quickly realize how much effort and risk is involved. Good luck.  


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On another note I had no idea some liquid was involved in the gold plating process.  But it does explain why the heart looks like a watermark.  By that I mean the right side is a little darker and thicker.   Similar to a water spot where the stain is heavier in the region with more water and thinner where it tapers out. It's difficult to see this in the current photos, but when my new camera arrives it may reveal it.

I am planning on having all my coins sent in for grading.  Looking forward to that. I was waiting for blazedout419 to show me how to complete the forms.

But that won't prove anything. What justifies a defect such as this is the general consensus. Anyone out there with a similar defect will have an impossible time proving it unless mike directly confirms it for that particular coin.  Regardless of rank and status on this forum. My defect just happens to be shaped like a heart. Which makes it extremely special and desirable. And it's the real deal. If you think otherwise than get lost. This coin isn't for you. I don't have the time or inclination to deface my coins to artificially inflate their value. And if you think it's that easy and have the time and are willing to risk trashing your valuable coin then go ahead. I like to think most people are sane enough not to do such a thing.

Anyway the posted SMS messages make it clear that random specks of gold may have ended up on the face of some of these coins.  If you believe mine is one of those rare gems, post your bids. Previous bids are 7.1 and 7. But I value the coin more than that as I feel I hit the lottery with this gem. It truly is one of a kind.  Minimum bid for consideration is 10btc.  

I'll have some really neat macro shots in a few days.  I think you'll like them.  It'll be a spectacle! True marketing gold. The crown jewel of casascius error coins. And it ain't tarnished brass!