debased Öffentlichkeit Deposited
Said of coins underweight or of precious-metal content inferior to legal standards, or to those claimed on the coin?s face. Not always counterfeit: genuine examples include the later gold dollars by Christopher Bechtler, Jr., from dies reading A. BECHTLER, and the Mormon gold coins with PURE GOLD or P.G. which were nevertheless heavily al- loyed.
- Breen Encyclopedia