1931 5 Centavos

Nice piece, Cowboy. I generally buy pre-WW2 lots of 5 centavos for just this one coin.

There are no mint records of this coin ever being made. However a few hundred exist, first discovered in the 1960's. There is a story about a mint worker using them for lunch money.

An MS 63 went for $11.5K a couple years ago. I paid about $600 for a vf and had a hard time getting it slabbed by NGC.

This is the second most couterfeited modern Mexican coin. The common diagnostic is the 3 in the date, a close up pic. would help.

The second 1 in the date is questionable for this coin. There are far more coins of this date where the second 1 is sliced and soldered than there are originals. Add a little environmental damage and viola.

Probably why 1921 5c are scarce :-).

Again after having some coin people examine this coin and after judging it real but with enviornmental damage. I have sent it off for grading. In 2-3 weeks I will know what the scoop is on this one.
Don't leave your coins in a storage shed for 10 years as the damage could be the difference between a few hundred and a few Thousand in value on a coin like this. Oh well.....Its a long story......

NGC They may try to clean it up if possible. I left it up to them as to what's best for the coin..

Again, nice job! Was there a 1922 2 centavos in the shed?

Hey, next month check out Stack's auction PRs lot 2855 to see what folks would pay for one of these. I'm curious, I have a VF details environmental damage.

Slightly OT I asked NGC what the diff:

What is the difference between damaged and corroded and environmental damage on an NGC slab label?

Is one designation better or worse than another? For example if I have three of the same coin graded by NGC VF details, and one holder says damaged, one holder says corroded, and one holder says environmental damage, are the registry points the same?

Thank you in advance for your help.

Answer:

Thanks for the question. Corrosion and Environmental Damage are very similar. Corrosion, specifically, is a chemical reaction on the coin's surfaces (and one that cannot be reversed). Environmental Damage is a broader term that indicates improper storage.

Damage is not necessarily an environmental issue like Corrosion or ED, but can indicate any damage to the coin's surface including a deep gouge or some sort of cut.

None of these designations are necessarily better or worse than the other; it's in the eye of the beholder. They are given the same points in the NGC Registry.

The Mexico 1931 5C VF details environmental damage went for $678 including BP at the Ponterios auction.

NGC certified