Just Bob

I think Coinbuf nailed it. A good soak in acetone should make the "damage" disappear.

That was my first reaction when I saw the coin, but I will be the first to admit that I don't know enough about matte proof Lincolns to be able to make that call from a picture.

Hi, Pat. It's been a while. I hope all is well.

You know what this means if this actually happened and there was a planchet in the coining chamber at the time, don't you? It means that there may be a coin out there, struck partially out of the collar, with at least one collar-shaped groove in it. Unfortunately, if the finder posts this genuine error coin on this forum, most of us are going to see the groove, call it post-mint damage, and tell him/her to spend it.

Is it possible that the collar came loose and was struck twice by the reverse die, causing two grooves in the die, which created the two raised lines?

I was referring to the OP's coin, and what he apparently thinks looks like letters to the left of the tail of the "9." I don't know a lot, but I do know where the designer's initials are (and are not) on Lincoln cents.

Is this the area where you see initials?

I assume that Heritage gave you that appraisal in writing. Do you mind posting a screen shot of it for us to see? Something does not seem right.

Cool find. I agree with the suggestion to give it to a YN (young numismatist).

Where was the coin? Was it in DHL's possession, or did the auction firm have it?

It looks like a generation 8, used August and September of 2000. It would be easier to identify if both labels were uncovered, but I understand why JP doesn't want to do that.

Someone really wanted that 91 point registry score bump badly. Or, maybe they just wanted the prestige of owning one of the finest graded examples. I wonder, though, if there are more out there waiting to be made. A price like that might just set folks looking for gradable examples in rolls and mint sets.

Rulau 4th edition doesn't have any additional information.

I had a feeling you would catch that.

I could post pictures with circles and arrows, and lay it all out, but I prefer to make this a "teach a man to fish" reply. I will give the basics, and provide some links for further study, if anyone is so inclined. This information is also available in the Red Book. As Sandon stated above, Trade Dollars had two obverse types. There were also two reverse types. (Skip Fazzari has done extensive research into these, and has identified several sub-types, which have differences in the eagle's feathers, the right end of the ribbon, and other places.) The type one obverse and reverse were used through 1876, so no coin dated 1877 should show any markers of either the type one obverse or reverse. Here is a link to a site with pictures that show the most easily identifiable markers for the two obverse and reverse types. https://www.usacoinbook.com/coins/3169/dollars/trade/1876-P/type-1-obverse-type-2-reverse/ The NGC Variety Plus page shows which years has which types paired together, https://www.ngccoin.com/variety-plus/united-states/dollars/trade-dollars-1873-1885/819432/

I like it!

Great coin! Congratulations!

Thank you for returning this thread to its original intent.

Actually, this coin is a counterfeit, too.

I don't blame you for that. I wouldn't want anything that might cause a spot or other streak being trapped inside there with my coin. Inert plastic is one thing, but a hair would need to be removed.

Here is a link to a discussion on another forum which has pictures of several other coins showing this same damage, along with a possible explanation of how they were formed. Dryer coin thread - click here

That is sad. He was one of the good guys.

Wouldn't you just love to be the newbie at NGC who gets stuck grading a pallet full of ASEs? I'd go nuts!

I seem to recall there being two different varieties with the mint mark placed next to the "5" like that. (A "high D" and a "higher D" ? Or maybe a "high D" and a "not-so-high D"?) The one that NGC has listed as FS-401 is the higher of the two, I believe. It appears to match your coin. This one actually did bring a premium at one time, since it was also listed in the Red Book. It may, still - I do not keep up with these. I am not sure how many collectors would want to buy one as beat up as that one, but it is pretty cool to find one in the wild. Do some looking on Ebay at sold certified examples, and you should be able to tell if it would be worth the money to have yours graded.

I don't want anyone to think that I meant that I was feeling superior, or that not having a set of scales somehow made me a better collector than anyone else. I just never felt scales were necessary to what I collect. I was, however, wondering if I was missing out on something, since everyone else, including almost every newbie, seems to own a set. I sort of felt like the oddball. I find it somehow comforting to find out that there are others like me.