1919 Mercury Dime, Is It Environmentally Damaged?

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Author	Replies: 12 / Views: 1,296
digger27 New Member United States 10 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 09:14 am Hello all, you guys have been nice enough to help me out on a few items in the past and I humbly ask for your help once again. I am curious about a grade but also have a question about what a professional grading service might think of it regarding that dreaded term, Environmentally Damaged". The reason is this is a dug coin and even though it doesn't seem to me to have any kind of damage or indications that it was taking a dirt nap for 97 years I wonder what constitutes grading it with that label and does this coin show anything that would cause concern. Honestly I can't figure out why this coin came out of the ground in such good shape, even modern coins briefly buried rarely look this good for me. After a move several months ago my good cameras are awol so I will post several camera phone pics in an effort to convey it's condition. It is not dark, no toning, no tarnishing, it looks as normal in color as a good Mercury dime in any of your collections. I rinsed it off at home, there is still a bit of dirt on it because I stopped when I realized this might be special, but it pretty much came out of the ground this way. The E in the word One looks fudged but that is just dirt, all details and the rim are sharp and clear...everywhere. To everyone that has seen pics on my forums most of us think it somehow came from the mint to this park where someone dropped it. So what do you think? Grade pretty high...high enough to consider getting it slabbed? Is it environmentally damaged? Don't think I will ever sell it, it looks too good and I get more enjoyment out of it on display than any money I would receive for it but inquiring minds still want to know. Thanks! Report this Post to the Staff

John1 Moderator United States 56855 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 09:21 am Can't help much but it does look like it has full split bands. John1 Report this Post to the Staff
BigSilver Pillar of the Community United States 2843 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 09:49 am Strange how it seems to have fully split bands, but in the pictures seems to have very little mint luster. Could it have been over dipped? Are you scanning or photographing it? As far as slabbing, if its resale value you are after, I see this as a very slim margin. It would depend on how much you are already in it, and how much it would cost you to get it slabbed. I would think the sale price on this coin to be in $65-$90 range. If you are slabbing for a collection. Different story.... Report this Post to the Staff
westernsky Pillar of the Community United States 7627 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 10:13 am I don't see any environmental "damage" but the toning appears to be due to natural oxidation of the metal. I'd call it XF45. Nice coin for a 7070 type set! Report this Post to the Staff
Jaobler Pillar of the Community United States 6394 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 10:32 am Details look AU but the lack of luster which would normally be present for an AU coin is a defect. It's not corrosion as such but my guess is that long-term burial has degraded the luster and that would likely be flagged as some kind of problem by a grading service. So, I would not invest the fee but would instead enjoy owning this very impressive detecting find. Report this Post to the Staff
T-BOP Rest in Peace United States 18456 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 11:08 am I Would say AU-50-53 fully rounded bands. Quite an impressive detector find . I would not send it in as mentioned above. I would try to clean it up just a little more with Acetone and thorn or toothpick. DO NOT DIP in silver dip ! Report this Post to the Staff
digger27 New Member United States 10 Posts	Posted 05/26/2016 11:30 am Thanks all! As I said the pictures with my cell phone do not do it justice. I will clean it up a bit more as suggested and take it to my local coin shop for a final opinion but instead of considering slabbing I will just probably put it in a holder and stare at it forever more. My detecting God's are fickle so I don't assume I will ever dig up a coin of any kind in this condition ever again so it will be a great reminder that cool things do happen out there from time to time. Report this Post to the Staff
Coinfrog Bedrock of the Community United States 94367 Posts	Posted 05/28/2016 5:09 pm I'd start at your LCS before doing anything else. Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21788 Posts	Posted 05/28/2016 6:34 pm I am not a fan of TPGrading, but that is just because I am not keen on storing coins in slabs. If it were mine, in this case, I would make an exception and would indeed have it TPGraded. My opinion is that it may have survived most of it's slumber in the dirt, but I still have some doubt in my own opinion, hence the TPGrading decision. Report this Post to the Staff
paralyse Bedrock of the Community United States 12057 Posts	Posted 05/29/2016 8:59 pm AU but might go ED on the reverse E PLURIBUS appearing to be slightly corroded. Silver is usually dug in better shape than copper, especially in more neutral soil; gold even better still. I bet you were pretty happy when she popped out of the dirt.. Member ANA - EAC - TNA - SSDC - CCT #890 "Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done." -- Louis D. Brandeis Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21788 Posts	Posted 05/30/2016 03:42 am I can understand the question asked: 'Environmental damage' - burial? The fields look a little rough. Report this Post to the Staff
T-BOP Rest in Peace United States 18456 Posts	Posted 05/30/2016 08:15 am sel_691 , you'd be a little rough around the edges too if you were just dug up after 97 years . Report this Post to the Staff
macmercury Pillar of the Community United States 5833 Posts	Posted 05/30/2016 12:34 pm Fantastic dug up treasure! I wouldn't clean it anymore, as I see some fine scratch lines at the rim area already, if you have to I would only touch up between the R and T in LIBERTY. I have no idea what kind of residue embedded after 97 years. Report this Post to the Staff
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