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I have been banging my head on the wall 
trying to figure out what caused the striations on the coin reverse.
Posted 01/22/2012 11:04 pm
The striations are die polishing. Common in every series, less-visible in some than in others. I personally lean towards a "one-size-fits-all" model of coin grading, but it plainly doesn't fit given the relative prominence of these minor defects in a coin or a die. This kind of die polishing is common with Morgans, but much less visible due to the sheer size of the coin. In a Merc, it's a focal point whether you want it to be or not.
Even if you consider the coin against the narrower standard of "the best that mint could do under their own circumstances," where one can make allowances for a New Orleans Morgan, this one deserves harder scrutiny.
Even if you consider the coin against the narrower standard of "the best that mint could do under their own circumstances," where one can make allowances for a New Orleans Morgan, this one deserves harder scrutiny.
