Morgans From Coin Shop

I just realized mu outdoor cell phone pictures are such better and show the coins much more nicely. I will post them up soon.

I like the 1881-S, and don't think the price you paid was too bad. Right around retail.

The cameo on the 81-S seems to be a little "scuffed", which gives the illusion of bag marks.

The NGC price guide has the 1880-S MS66 at $355, but I'm surprised they gave it a 66 with all the scuffs on the face. It looks like a 64 to me.

That '81-S is fine. The 1880-S looks overgraded now that I'm seeing pics on my laptop, looks a 65 at best. It got a * because, I'm guessing, the reverse doesn't meet PL specifications but the obverse does. Relatively common on '80-S's.

I think it was a good purchase. The 81s is very nice for a 64 and the star on the 80s is worth $35 over bid probably any day. So, what you paid is not that far off. Good stuff.

Hi Jon,
Over all you did good on those buys. I know the 81-S is common even in high grades but I am not a Morgan guy so I don't know much about them. FYI: Your photos look real good considering they are from a phone but it took a long time to load on my PC.Maybe you could crop them before posting?
John1

I think they're both dynamite coins, and nicely bought. The 64 is a small fish in a huge sea of high-end 1881-S's, but it stands out as a strong 64 technically while boasting the little slivers of color on both faces that would make it the target coin in an auction competing against many similar. This one's quite liquid, thank you, and liquidity ought to be an attribute leveraged whenever possible when shopping for a coin, especially one which has plenty of competition at the grade.

The 1880-S is deceptive, and a clear victim of the harsh nature of digital photography. A nice frosty Morgan with luster breaks in the frost looks, under a digital sensor, just like a Morgan which fought the Mint bag equivalent of a hundred bar fights. I'm willing to bet that the most sensitive-possible laser measuring equipment would barely be able to measure a depth on the "marks" on the cheek - they could be bare molecules thick and look just as visible as a gouge to the camera.

And the fields are spectacular. You have to hold one of these to understand how skritches on the fields just visually disappear when you look at it in-hand. The power of the Prooflike luster washes away marks, and the very high contrast between those marks and the surrounding mirror-flat fields overemphasizes field chatter as well when under a digital sensor.

Again, a pretty liquid coin. 1880-S in 66 is a reachable grade for an average collector committed to Morgans - there are plenty in higher grades to tempt the deeper pockets, while any MS66 Morgan is still a spectacular coin. The star adds value even for someone buying the coin and not the slab - one look at those fields, microns from being Prooflike, and you know why the star is there. People will reach a bit beyond their budgets for this coin, but like the first it'd have to be presented carefully to realize maximum resale value. These would sell themselves in-hand a lot faster than they would in an online auction.

And oh, heck yes, I'd have either of them in my collection in an instant.

Let me just add that I'm glad to see you buying more Morgans! They are truly spectacular coins, and I would have paid $380 for them with no problem.