Grading

Conditional rarity is a term that I have heard on several occasions and it had been explained to me, but it just dawned on me now what this actually means.....hmmmm.

I don;t know enough about the different years or varieties to even venture a guess at grade... Should not the year, mint, variety, (knowledge of whether or not it is know to have strike issues) be a factor in the grading?

The high detail in those cotton bolls tells me that this is a high grade coin despite the photo's slate gray appearance.... I don't know to what degree distracting features like chatter or field and cheek dings actually come into play....but I don't really see any... oh heck, MS-65 (at least).

Now that I understand what this conditional rarity thing is now, it causes me to ponder the difference between a grader and an attributor... When a coin is submitted to PCGS for instance for both services, the coin is examined by both graders and an attributor correct? The attributor is a singular person is he not? Does the coin not go to the attrribtor first and then the grading staff?

If this is the case, and the customer had an extremely high grade 1878 v-44 that he wanted both grade and attribution on the label, would it not make sense to submit the coin first for grading only (banking on the long shot that the graders will not recognize the variety) and bestow a higher grade as it being a run of the mill high grade 1878 silver dollar? Then, when the acceptable grade has been achieved to the customer's satisfaction, resubmit the coin (in holder) for attribution only?

You're up kinda early Dave... I hope that I am not wearing you out with all of these noob type questions.... If it gets to be too much, don't feel obligated to answer, I am sure that others will be around shortly to exploit my ignorance of grading tactics.

edited to add:

Thanks very much Dave...

You sure got the "masking toning" part right.



After a dip:





Cleaned, smoked, submitted, graded.

From the original post:




Here's the underside of grading.

Maybe I am not following this too well.... You broke it out of the holder so you could clean it?

Fenton,




No. Observe closely the even, dull color of this one. This is characteristic of "smoking," in which the coin doctor does exactly what the name implies to mask hairlines. The smoke particles sink into the hairlines, filling them, and if you get it right the whole coin looks naturally, if lifelessly, toned. There is no color to it.

I'm just catching up here......The problem I see is, 1921 has a fabulous strike, and even in lower MS grades such features as the hair over the ear, is still in great shape....IMHO, I didn't think the Reverse warranted an MS grade...I run from 21's due to scribbles...We can soon see 5,000 variables for scribbles....just kidding, but 21's are just to tuff to attribute if you don't have all the die breaks, and this coin, which does have these helpfull cracks, are not listed in the die cracks guide...must be a scribbles variety? and how did that grade MS63 with all the apparent wipe marks? or are they polish lineswith the eagles breast feathers that are not apparent..I would have guessed MS53?but as I have said, I really don't know 21 series, and they are there own monster. with there own grading standards....
which is one thing I want to point out for grading...
One must know not just the Photograde book, but rather the year series...where knowledge is so vary important "Grading principles are not applied equally to every year"....