1897-S Morgan- Grade And PVC Question.

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 14 / Views: 1,360
chuckster 125 Pillar of the Community United States 4113 Posts	Posted 07/06/2008 6:33 pm 2 questions: 1) 1897S Morgan- what grade?- it has a real nice hour glass/cartwheel in the light- hard to photo this. Question 2. - it has one or two spots that have "Green" on it- PVC shows up under 15X mag but not 5X! Should I try acetone on the coin to remove it, or leave it alone as its pretty minute? Image: morgan1897sjpeg1.jpg 57.45 KB Image: morgan1897sjpeg2.jpg 59.87 KB Image: morgan1897sjpeg3.jpg 67.48 KB Image: morgan1897sjpeg4.jpg 68.19 KB Image: 1897smorganjpegpvc1.jpg 39.03 KB Image: 1897smorganjpegpvc2.jpg 51.56 KB Report this Post to the Staff

Amazon99 Pillar of the Community United States 2443 Posts	Posted 07/06/2008 6:43 pm Trying with acetone wouldn't hurt it, so I would try. Just make sure it's 100% pure acetone. Report this Post to the Staff
dom Valued Member United States 265 Posts	Posted 07/06/2008 8:25 pm I agree, pure acetone should not harm it, but yes it is minute and I can't say from the pics if that is what it is. I would call it a AU55. The breast feathers look flat. The S minted Morgans usually had a good strike. Also, it might be the quality of the pics but I also question if it had been cleaned before because it looks a little buffed. But this may be unlikely if it has that nice cartwheel that you mention. Report this Post to the Staff
Metalman Pillar of the Community United States 7123 Posts	Posted 07/06/2008 8:49 pm Sorry pics are to small to grade from , acetone should not hurt the coin but if it is PVC it may help to keep it from spreading . Report this Post to the Staff
Bryan1315 Bedrock of the Community United States 14454 Posts	Posted 07/06/2008 9:31 pm the pics are a little small and looks like the white balance needs to be set but from what I can see it looks like it could be polished but I am not comfortable saying it for a fact without bigger pictures Report this Post to the Staff
Jaobler Pillar of the Community United States 6381 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 12:05 am Hi Chuckster, I'm with Dom on an AU grade. The luster looks strong around the obverse and reverse legends but becomes relatively dull in the fields, probably from brief circulation. The lack of detail on the eagle's breast feathers adds to my opinion that it's not mint state. Go for the acetone rinse. Can't hurt, might help! Report this Post to the Staff
chuckster 125 Pillar of the Community United States 4113 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 06:57 am Thanks for all the responses!- Appreciate it. I'll definitely clean off the PVC with pure acetone. Here are some new pic's up close to help with any grading questions. Shows better details regarding the eagles breast feathers etc and the possibility of this coin being polished. I'm no expert on this at all, but from what I have seen and read, in my opinion, I don't think this coin was polished. It does have a nice hour/glass cartwheel when I rotate it in the light, but that's not to say that maybe it was polished at one time, but I think there is too much detail that makes me think this was not polished and its closer to a MS grade. That said,anything is possible, I'm not the ORIGINAL owner of this coin (1897). Getting up there in age, but not that old! Image: Set21897sjpeg4.jpg 62.88 KB Image: Set21897sjpeg5.jpg 66.48 KB Image: Set21897sjpeg6.jpg 43.2 KB Image: Set21897sjpeg1.jpg 74.43 KB Image: Set21897sjpeg2.jpg 70.67 KB Image: Set21897sjpeg3.jpg 61.54 KB Report this Post to the Staff
Wiz New Member United States 5 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 11:30 am As a newbe to Morgan's.....Just started my collection a year ago....I would really like to hear what everyone thinks of this coins grading with the better pics !! The hair lines and breast feathers are pretty strong to this inexperienced eye.... Report this Post to the Staff
SsuperDdave Moderator United States 23522 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 1:43 pm Here's an illustration of the difficulty of grading from photographs. Below are two coins, pictures shamelessly ripped from Heritage Auctions (http://coins.ha.com). One is AU58; one is MS63. Which is which? Report this Post to the Staff
chuckster 125 Pillar of the Community United States 4113 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 3:22 pm SuperDave; I'm going to say the first one is the MS63 and the second one is the AU58 I'm basing it more on the condition of the Denticles/Rim, although if I were grading them, I can't see either one being a MS63. Report this Post to the Staff
SsuperDdave Moderator United States 23522 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 4:28 pm Quote: I'm going to say the first one is the MS63 and the second one is the AU58 Nope. Other way around. This is just to illustrate the difficulty of grading from photographs; in-hand, I suspect that the AU58 coin would be easier to tell. How does this apply to your 1897? Well, based on what I see in the photos, the coin could be AU58 or a strong MS63. You just can't tell without the ability to see how the luster plays under the light, especially on the eagle's breast, above the ear and on the cheek. My guess is your coin is Mint State. Report this Post to the Staff
1sikevo Pillar of the Community United States 1130 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 4:57 pm The coin looks MS62 to me. As for SuperDave's little quiz (I didn't look at the answer yet) I'll say the top is AU, bottom MS. Clue: It's in the cottonballs. Report this Post to the Staff
chuckster 125 Pillar of the Community United States 4113 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 5:04 pm Originally, I was going to go the right way with it- from the marks on Liberty's face-but changed it based on the looks of the denticles- "WRONG!" What exactly are we looking for in the cottonballs to determine the grade? Thanks for the knowledge! Report this Post to the Staff
Jaobler Pillar of the Community United States 6381 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 5:41 pm On Dave's photos, I see the difference in field luster between the two coins. On the first (AU) example, notice how the field below Liberty's chin and in front of her face has a hazy, bluish-grey color. Notice how the field surface between the stars at the left obverse edge is free of that haze. The hazy effect is the result of slight wear disrupting the original lustrous surface. The surface between the stars is protected from wear and won't show this disruption at a grade of AU-58. By the time you get down to AU-50 or lower, luster begins to wear away even in the protected areas. The second (mint state) example shows little or no surface quality difference between the exposed and protected field areas. Therefore, it is a mint state coin. Report this Post to the Staff
1sikevo Pillar of the Community United States 1130 Posts	Posted 07/07/2008 5:43 pm The cottonballs are the highest point of the obverse. Any indication of wear will show up here first. A properly struck coin will show detial. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 14 / Views: 1,360

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: US Coins and Currency Forums Forum: US Classic and Colonial Coins

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.41 seconds to rattle this change.