Graffiti, Or Morgan's Initias?

I'd have to bet graffiti... No one aside of a signature expert could compare that with Morgan initials... but I think that's a reach and a half.. And really don't see him defacing one of "his coins"... If anything I think he'd have the means to have it done nicely. So again would be willing to bet alot on graffiti.

Thanks for the input. As you point out,even if they were G.M.'s initials, there's no way of knowing for sure.

I was thinking that maybe they were fiddling around with the design of the coin, and G.M. said: "Okay boys, this is how I want it." and quickly put his initials on the coins so everyone would know which coin was which. The scratches between the stars sort of reinforced that line of thought.

Plus the fact that the handwriting is so delicate compared to the depth of the gouges--as if the metal was still soft. But I don't know the process of coin minting; it may be that the metal is never heated to the point of becoming pliable.

How about that funky "O", is that just a bag mark?

Plain old graffiti. Feeble attempt to do an engraving. I would have to think that if Morgan were to engrave one of his coins, he'd do a better job.

Just Graffiti. Would've been nice to see Morgan's initials though.

Oh, and your pictures are so much better than mine when I was getting started. I seriously considered drawing pictures and scanning them to share images.
Hope you'll stick around.

No problem at all, we're happy to try to help... We love questions, and pics even more!! So post away! And I love Morgans more than anything.... So post this first just playing, post at your leisure.

Looks to me like someone had nothing better to do one day and said I'll just scratch on this hear coin and one day someone else will say WTH...

Excellent attitude, vn3100. That's how you become a numismatist.

Don't clean the coins. Full stop. Just don't. Originality is imperative in coin collecting, and as you gain experience you'll understand how easy it is to detect cleaning of any type, even a non-invasive method like ultrasound. You'll learn the relationship between level of wear and expected "patina" (read: grubbiness ), and the small signs of a past cleaning like minute amounts of remaining grub in the nooks and crannies. A coin whose surfaces have been altered loses much of its' numismatic value in the eyes of collectors.

Of course, like all rules there are exceptions here. These, however, must be learned on a case-by-case basis; there is but one general exception: PVC damage. Some coin storage flips have been made using softened PVC plastic - flips and album pages - and the plasticizers used to soften the PVC outgas chemicals which attack the metals of the coin. This is visible as a greenish deposit on the coin (in early stages, possibly a clear/whitish haze), and it must be treated when found or it will eventually destroy the coin. Fortunately, there's a perfect solution in the form of acetone, an organic solvent which is chemically incapable of affecting the coin's metal while being a deadly enemy of PVC damage. Here's an example of a coin I treated:





That's what PVC infestation looks like. This is what it looks like after the acetone is done with it:



This was an extreme case. If you're sharp, you can see the permanent damage caused by the PVC, but in this case it's a very small area and it was just getting to the point of being permanent.



With all that said, the natural "toning" process of silver - tarnishing, to those who don't like it (poor sods ) - also creates such a color on the surface of a coin. So, if you see it, don't necessarily panic. Get images up here, and we'll look at it case-by-case to see what's necessary.