Is This Trade Dollar Authentic Or Counterfeit?

Nope, you're right, TypeCoin, I forgot about the changeover and the 1/2 - 2/1 coins. That being said, the right obverse appears to have very rough and pitted surfaces, as well as the top obverse, and the right reverse. In addition, the reverse shows excellent detail on the eagle, in fact, improbably excellent detail, but the obverse has mushy, flat design details, especially in the drapery and the face. Note also that the right obverse is fully struck (as evidenced by clearly separated stars) but S1-S2 and S4-S5 show weakness that is not explainable by a poor strike and there is no evidence of MAD. If the coin had been heavily whizzed, I would expect to see major hairlines and an even amount of loss of details on both obverse and reverse, yet no visible hairlines are present. Yet another mark against this coin is the evenness of the color between both sides of the coin -- this could be explained by dipping. However, dipping wouldn't explain the odd appearance of the denticles between S7-S10.

So to sum it up, you have a coin with exactly the same color on both sides, details that range from VF+ to Unc on the same side of the coin, partial roughness and porosity on both sides but not covering the entire coin, no direct evidence of harsh mechanical cleaning, an implausibly well detailed eagle, and all of this on a coin that is the 2nd most expensive date / MM for the series.

My amended verdict would be "inconclusive but moderately possible that coin may be either a forgery or heavily altered/doctored." If it is real, and if it didn't have any issues, it would be a $1100-$1600 coin.

--AB

Well this coin is for sale on ebay right now -- 282228494675

Here is the description "Beautiful Trade dollar. Coin in picture is coin you will receive".



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This is a type 1 obverse with a type 1 reverse, which is a valid combination for 1875.

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I agree with paralyse regarding the unnatural "wear" on this coin, the stars in front of Liberty's legs are FLAT, but the eagle's breast is sharper than a proof.

I am changing my opinion on the OP coin to questionable authenticity. I have taken some photos of my PCGS XF45 CAC 1875 S that has a type 1 obverse and compared them to the OP coin. Note the lower part of the ribbon extends much farther on the OP coin. The stars are entirely different on the op coin as there is no separation between the star tips, and the lack of any toe detail on the OP coin is a concern.

I would recommend to the OP that the raw coin be sent into a TPG for authenticity before being sold on ebay.

My PCGS 1875 S:


OP Coin:

Oh, I didn't realize that the OP and the ebay seller were the same person. I sent the OP a message via ebay asking for the weight and thickness, and he delisted the coin.

The stars looked weird to me as well, and I have no explanation for how that happened. The inconsistency in the ribbon is intriguing as well. All I know is that the luster is completely wrong and I would have avoided this coin in the first place. Without in-hand inspection, I would say that it is impossible to say with certainty that this coin is genuine or fake from just the pictures.

The stars are totally off. Whizzing moves metal around, but it doesn't move it THAT much.

I also reported it. Quite frankly this counterfeit stuff is getting just a tad rediculous. Ruining the entire hobby.