>> Many surviving owls bear such test cuts, which greatly reduce their value to collectors. Some counterfeit owls, even with noticeably deficient weight, managed to survive intact and be collectable today — a 12.44 gram example sold for $300 in a recent auction.

Collectors be damned. I would rather own a coin with a history. A ancient coin with a test cut, or even an outright forgery, is more interesting than any pure and clean coin. I also like the old coins with the punctures, the ones that were clearly worn as a necklace. A coin that was around the neck of a real person walking around ancient Rome is way more interesting than one sat gathering dust in a vault.