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A Troika of Wonderful 1951-S Washington Quarters

Started by TomB,

14 posts in this topic

TomB

TomB

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This is hardly a difficult coin to find in circulated grades and even in the MS grades it is quite common and can be traded by the roll. However, high grade, nicely toned coins are a bit tougher, as one might expect. The three coins that are the subject of this thread were obtained by me in the late 1990s from a single source in a single transaction that contained the greatest number of wonderful, originally toned coins that I have ever had the good fortune to purchase at one time.

 

I sent in a number of the coins from this purchase in late 1998 to early 1999 and expected to do quite well with the grades. At this point in time PCGS was not routinely giving out the MS67 grade for WQs and it took one whale of a coin to obtain that grade. My October, 1997 population report (before my submission) shows 112 1951-S WQs graded by PCGS with an MS67 population of nine coins while my December, 1999 population report (after my submission) shows 206 1951-S WQs graded by PCGS with an MS67 population of 14 coins, which included my three pieces. The coins I sent in were nice and high grades were anticipated, but these 1951-S WQs were a pleasant surprise. They were not a surprise for their individual grades, but rather were a surprise because they all graded the same and since they are also the same date and mintmark combination and have sequential certification numbers it was pretty cool. As is evident, they also share a common look.

 

Recently, I have changed how I take images and have followed Mark Goodman’s book much more closely and this has resulted in significantly improved images, in my opinion. The three coins shown below have a little more color and luster in-hand, but the images are pretty darn accurate. Some folks might not like toning and some might blast a coin for every tick on it, but I think the coins are accurately graded. I also have larger images of each coin for those interested. Enjoy.

 

TBR2H1951SP67A.jpg

 

TBR2H1951SP67B.jpg

 

TBR2H1951SP67C.jpg

 

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James_OldeTowne

James_OldeTowne

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The images are very good, but more importantly, all three coins are exquisite. I don't recall offhand exactly what my '51-S looks like, but I strive to include many such nicely toned quarters in my set.

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PCcoins

PCcoins

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Hey Tom, you said you got these all at one time. Do you know the origins of the toning? They look to be from double mint sets, but they all look very similar which leads me think they might have sat in an old album for decades, undisturbed.

 

My favorite is the 3rd one.... or maybe the 2nd one too.

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TomB

TomB

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Woo-Hoo!!! I like it when folks like not only my images, but also my coins. I've written about the transaction in private messages before, and might have written some details within a thread or two, but it boiled down to I was given the opportunity to purchase a large portion of a collection put together from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s by a collector who loved original, toned coinage. Most of the coins were from double Mint Sets and I am as certain as can be that these three WQs had originally resided in various 1951 US Mint Sets. Perhaps I should post new images of some of the other WQs that came from that same collection, though many of you have already seen the coins in other posts, in PM exchanges or at shows. Here are two more quarters from the same collection that were purchased and graded at the same time as the three 1951-S WQs shown above. The top coin is in an MS66 holder and the bottom coin in an MS67 holder.

 

TBR2H1949DP66.jpg

 

TBR2H1949DP67.jpg

 

 

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