Prooflike Coins Lose Respect with New Scoring System
On Aug 19, 2015, there was a major change to the NGC Registry points awarded for $20 Liberty double eagles. This change had a dramatic effect on the relative rankings for some sets. Overall, the point values were increased for all dates, however, the point values for non-prooflike rare dates increased dramatically, eg, an 1886 $20 XF45 went from 5591 to 11970, and 1861-O $20 XF40 went from 2699 to 8686. However, rare double eagles with the prooflike designation increased very modestly. This scoring change resulted in the Registry set that was previously in second place (Swiss collection) moving from a distant #2 position to a leading #1 position without adding a single coin.
The Grandview Collection held the top position for 2+ years in the Registry set: "Liberty Head Double Eagles, 1850-1907, Mint State and Proof." Prior to the scoring change, the point values were:
Grandview Collection on Aug 18, 2015: 350287 total points (leading by 18017 points)
Swiss Collection on Aug 18, 2015: 332270 total points
After the scoring change:
Swiss Collection: 549338 total points
Grandview Collection: 512647 total points (trailing by 36691)
Several better date twenties including rare prooflike examples were recently added to the Grandview Collection, but currently still trails by more than 20,000 points. Recent coins added include a 1890-CC $20 AU58 PL (unique with the PL designation, image shown below), 1876 $20 MS62 PL, and 1898-S $20 MS63 DPL (the only CAC approved DPL Type 3 double eagle).
The Grandview collection includes more than 37 prooflike $20 Liberties which were only modestly affected by the scoring change even though these PL coins are often more than 100 times rarer than their non-PL counterparts, and value of prooflike examples have increased relative to non-PL examples over the past decade.
I am surprised that the NGC Registry scoring system does not take into account the relative or absolute rarity of double eagles in prooflike or deep prooflike condition. Interestingly, in other series, eg, Morgan dollars, scarce PL coins can have much higher scores than non-PL coins of the same date, see 1921 $1 example below, while in the $20 Liberty double eagle series, prooflike coins never have a higher point value than the next highest non-PL grade, see 1874-S $20 example, yet can be much greater in value.
1921 Morgan Dollar (0.9% designated PL or DPL)
105868 coins in all grades, 794 coins in PL and 165 coins in DPL
In MS64 (non-PL) 320 Registry points
In MS65 (non-PL) 575 Registry points
In MS64 PL 1707 Registry points
In MS64 DPL 6651 Registry points
1874-S $20 (only 2 designated PL in all grades, less than 0.1% in PL)
In AU58 (non-PL) 2614 Registry points (pop 1237/611 higher)
In MS60 (non-PL) 3194 Registry points (pop 201/401 higher)
In MS61 (non-PL) 3952 Registry points (pop 367/34 higher)
In MS62 (non-PL) 5264 Registry points (pop 31/3 higher)
In AU58 PL 2740 Registry points (pop 1/1 higher)
NGC is the established leader in the area of grading prooflike coinage. I have purchased many coins with reflective surfaces in PCGS holders and submitted those coins to NGC in an attempt to receive the prooflike designation. I would have thought that NGC would have considered the rarity and desirability of prooflike coinage when it revised the scoring system for $20 Liberty double eagles. Nonetheless, I appreciate the opportunity to participate in the NGC Registry and all of the effort that goes into maintaining it.
Grandview Collection
http://coins.www.collectors-society.com/registry/coins/SetListing.aspx?PeopleSetID=106968
One last example of the disconnect between Registry point value and rarity is this 1890-CC $20 AU58 PL, which is the only coin with the PL designation in any grade. It earns 5322 points, while a much more common and less valuable MS61 example earns 6400 points.
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