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 Replies: 199 / Views: 49,856 |
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New Member
United States
18 Posts |
I was going through a bunch of coins a relative had accumulated over the years and came across what appears to be a 1916-D dime in great condition. It was just loose with a bunch of other coins from the period. Is it legit? What would the approximate grade be?   |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10982 Posts |
Keeping a $20,000 coin loose with a bunch of other coins is scary! I'm no expert on added mintmarks but if this coin is authenticated, it looks mint state to me. Say it's in a PCGS slab at MS64FB, you have a $30,000 coin. Don't put it under your pillow, have a ANA dealer examine it. Good luck! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2540 Posts |
holy smokes, Batman.
Not what I expected to see!
PCGS here I come!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
968 Posts |
The PCGS website has a page about fake 1916-D's: http://www.pcgs.com/articles/articl...l?artid=5780It isn't jumping out at me as an obvious fake, but I'm no expert. Although it does look a bit like the image on the upper left of that page. Apparently both images on that page are fakes, although it isn't labeled very well (you have to check the actual name of the image to tell). Given the potential value of what you have I'd strongly recommend getting it authenticated. If it is real it will be well worth the money to get it graded and authenticated. If it is fake, at least you know. Good luck! I hope it is real! Edited by Saruma
11/20/2009 11:50 am
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Rest in Peace
United States
5375 Posts |
I personally think it is an added mintmark, because the position looks off from what I have seen, but I really am not that well versed on these. Have it examined by a dealer and/or wait for some more opinions on this.
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Valued Member
United States
278 Posts |
Blow up a photo around the mint mark. The detail of the shape of the "D" is one of the few ways to actually detect an altered mint mark.
And the more I look at coins in similar condition on Heritage, the more the D looks altered. The top and bottom of the where the curved part runs into the vertical part does not seem to match the images there.
Edited by rustyboy
11/20/2009 12:06 pm
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Rest in Peace
United States
5375 Posts |
Maybe I was wrong, is it in the right place rustyboy? I just thought it would be lower. Or are there multiple varieties?
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New Member
 United States
18 Posts |
I took some pictures of the mint mark, as best I could, from a few different angles.    The coin was loose with a bunch of other coins, including 23 other Mercury dimes, which included 7 1916s, a 1916-S, and 13 from 1917-1918. So I believe they were accumulated at the time, and have no reason to suspect it's a fake. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10982 Posts |
I'm no expert on this but the location of the mintmark looks correct.
A coin of that value has to be authenticated "in-hand" by an expert. There is no other way to know if it's genuine. This coin is among the most counterfeited coins in history. Fakes were being produced in the 1920's through today.
I'd send it to PCGS or NGC if there was not a major dealer located nearby.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1116 Posts |
wow I hope it is real get it authenticated asap like bherring1964 said it is one of the most counterfeited coins in history
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Valued Member
United States
278 Posts |
The location looks correct. If you look closely at http://coins.ha.com/common/view_ite...Lot_No=2275#, there seems to be some tailing on the very left hand of the D. Again, I don't see it, even on the blown up images of the coin in question. But I am no expert, and it is only one of the 4 dies used on the D, so take it with a grain of salt. I hope it's real, just for an awesome story's sake. |
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New Member
United States
18 Posts |
I don't think there are any 'major' dealers around here. So what should I do? Join PCGS and send it to them? How much should I insure it for?
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Valued Member
United States
278 Posts |
I personally would want a better confirmation of status before joining and sending it. Take a trip this weekend. I would not mail it without ~20K in insurance. That may be rather expensive, hence having a good feeling prior to sending it.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
12437 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
763 Posts |
I recently joined PCGS in order to authenticate a 1901-S Quarter, and I have enjoyed dealing with them.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
968 Posts |
Besides the PCGS link I gave above, I also just looked at my copy of the PCGS grading book (Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection). If you can find a copy take a look at page 322. They have a side by side comparison of a real and fake mint mark. Yours looks a lot more like the real "D" than the fake one. One point they make about the fakes is that the phony "D" is thin, having a lower profile than the real mark. Your mark seems pretty high, so I'm leaning more and more towards real. I haven't sent anything to PCGS, so I can't help you there, other than to say that I believe the USPS has the highest insurance coverage of the major shippers, $25,000. As nice of condition as that coin is, you might want to insure it for that amount. |
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Replies: 199 / Views: 49,856 |
Posted 11/20/2009 06:53 am
