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 Replies: 10 / Views: 1,869 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6387 Posts |
I took advantage of that new "Bill Me Later" credit service to pay for this coin. They give a 10% discount for your first purchase which brought the price down nicely. No-motto half eagles are much scarcer than the with-motto type and usually cost more. How would you grade this one?   |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2120 Posts |
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
Very, very tough coin to grade. It's extremely well-struck except for the dubious denticles. The fields are quite busy without having any single standout mark; the same goes for the devices. All the same, I'm having a difficult time finding what I'd call circulation wear. I gotta grade this, eh?  OK. I believe NGC wimped out and gave it AU55 based on the fields when it should be 58; the technical merits of the coin deserve a Mint State grade but I have a hard time believing such chatter could happen without circulation. I further believe that your direct lighting makes the coin look less than it should - I lean towards lighting gold with diffuse light in the future. |
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Moderator
United States
16679 Posts |
Very nice coin jaobler. Looks to be MS but has many scattered contact marks as well as some strike weakness on the obverse.
I am going with NGC MS61 :-)
swcoin.ecrater.com
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10982 Posts |
This coin has a legitimate claim to MS but I doubt NGC graded it that way. The middle of the eagle's neck is the ONLY place I see an honest rub and that could be forgiven at MS61 or 62 levels.
My guess is AU58. If it were a common date from the 1880 to 1908 time frame, I believe it would have gone 62.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1691 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4541 Posts |
AU-58 I like the others am not sure about the marks in the fields
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8904 Posts |
I'm with SuperDave at AU-55. (I LIKE it!)  |
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Rest in Peace
United States
4849 Posts |
Very nice coin, and interesting. I see how people graded it both ways. It appears to have the details of an MS coin, but the luster of an AU coin. I've seen many coins like this make MS-61, so that wouldnt surprise me. Personally, I would go with Moe and SuperDave with AU-55.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1304 Posts |
I see wear in the hair, on the eagles neck, and the right talon. But this is either weak strike or I'm just seeing things. Probibly the latter. AU-55
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
6387 Posts |
Thanks people for all the comments. I agree with most that this coin has very slight wear, enough to keep it out of MS contention. Maybe it was a trick question and I should have said "NGC-slabbed" instead of "NGC-graded". It received an "AU details, improperly cleaned" rating. In-hand this piece shows a brassy color and virtually no cartwheel luster which confirm its cleaned status. My photos exaggerate the surface chatter and minimize the color issue. SuperDave, I'll do some experimenting with my lights. I use a halogen lamp close to the coin and also have an incandescent table lamp nearby to bring up the overall light level. Do you have suggestions on a set-up for indirect lighting? I'd appreciate your input!  |
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Replies: 10 / Views: 1,869 |
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Posted 09/17/2010 12:00 am
