I think that this is a much nicer coin than the last one, the 1886 S. I graded this when I bought it and looking at it now and also reviewing the PCGS Youtube video, "Grading Mint State Morgan dollars", I think I'm staying with my grade, maybe a 61 .........
I'm at AU-58 here. It's a decent slider, original surfaces, with average 1897 slider bagginess and eye appeal.
The 1897 is one of the great mysteries of the series, a relatively low mintage with ridiculously high survivorship in AU and UNC, common gun metal gray surface, but few with exceptional eye appeal. (There were at least two full 1897 mint bags in the Redfield hoard, and I remember full UNC rolls stacked on dealer tables and selling for $30 in the 1960s.) It's a great date for cherrypicking, because of the substantial premiums for VAM 6A and VAM 8.
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