1880 S And 1886 Morgan Dollars

First off, welcome.

The 1886 does look like a proof, of which only 886 were struck. I cringe to see it casually lying around as it is in these photos. If it is a proof, it's a four (if not five) figure value coin and you need be extraordinarily careful handling it. I mean white cotton gloves by the edges only and away from hard objects careful. The 1880-S looks to be an extremely nice specimen, but will be worth nowhere near what the 1886 is (again, if the latter actually is a proof).

Edit: Also, whatever you do, don't wipe either coin off with anything, even the seemingly softest cloth.

Guss, don't worry the coin is very well protected, I wanted to say it was "slabbed" but I'm not sure if that implies it has a grade, anyway it stays in a heavy duty coin case. I was pretty much terrified taking it out for pictures, I used gloves and carefully placed on a small microfiber towel, I can see how in the pictures it looks like I just keep them sitting on my dresser, lol.

Impossible to grade a proof without better pics, the reality is a couple scattered hairlines can be the difference between a 66 and a 62.

Thanks for the link Dave, and I will get some better pictures before I send them off. I'm looking at the coin under 16X magnification to compare to the link.

The pictures on VAM show very distinct marks around the date (small dash by the 1, marks touching parts of both 8s, a very odd looking 6), the "ATES" in states are imperfect, there is a dash through the E and two very noticeable ones through the T.

It took some careful, eye-straining examination, but my coin very clearly has all of these marks in the exact places they should be. I will upload some better pictures ASAP, but if I am correct about every "1886-P VAM-15 Proof Doubled 18-6, Dash 8" being there, does that mean it is a proof?

At first I thought a really dog-gone well-struck and designed fake, but I can't really decide...

They both appear to grade MS-65 (or more) DMPL or, if they are a proof, PR-65 (or more). Best of luck.

Now that I post them they're not much better at all, the glare makes the coin look messed up. if I work up the nerve to take em out of the case again I'll try again.

I don't know if you're aware, but depending on what the coin grades, it could be worth over $4 to $5 grand.

Most proof Morgans I see don't have such a nice cameo look to them, and yours is very clean and frosty. I wish you the best.

I'm aware of the (possible) value now. I'm still deciding on options but will definitely have it graded by NGC or PCGS,

I'd like to send it off myself, I'm thinking NGC with the professional photo option, and possibly the conservation service for the '86. If they can get rid of the small white spots I would be VERY happy, my understanding is they come from small amounts of moisture getting on the coin, I would think there's something they can do.

The PCGS site says they don't have a conservation service, thus NGC, and personally I think the NGC slabs just look better. I realize all this will be costly but I think it's worth it for this coin.