1921 Morgan "Proof Like"

[PocketArt]

Here is a 1921 Morgan dollar listed as high grade proof like. I was very tempted to bid on this piece but a few things didn't ring true. The reeded edge looked a bit flat, mirrors subdued, and I was scratching my head at why such a nice piece wasn't already in a TPG holder?

 

Could a raw Morgan like this be true? Perhaps to good to be true? My instincts said no, and I passed this one up.

 

Good call, or, did I miss out?

 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1921-P-MORGAN-DOLLAR-ULTRA-RARE-PROOF-LIKE-MAGNIFICENT-PIECE-SCARCE-070-/121991751649?hash=item1c674667e1:g:HFMAAOSwrb5XPefy

 

 

 

 

 

 

[physics-fan3.14]

Nah, I'd say you did well avoiding this one.

 

For some reason, PL's in 1921 were much scarcer than in other years. The fields were not basined as much, and production was cranked up - the dies were significantly different than in other years. Prooflikes in 1921 are hard to find, especially considering the significantly larger mintages.

 

The coin you posted appears to have had the contrast cranked all the way up. I'll bet in hand, the coin is semi-prooflike at best. With a significant amount of contrast tweaking and the right lighting, a semi-pl coin can be made to look PL (as the pictures show).

 

The coin probably grades 64, and for that price, you avoided getting scammed.

[bstrauss3]

Part of the reason was simply lack of knowledge of how to mint $1 coins. Prior to 1921, the last mintage was 1904...

[NJNCoins]

This is my NGC 1921 PL Morgan.. granted its a MS61 it is one of my favorite coins.. i have many semi proof like raw 1921's but nothing compares to this graded one..you can tell how different it is when i compare the raw to my graded PL.

 

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[Elbesaar]

 

Here's mine:

 

 

 

This was recently CAC'd

 

 

[david3142]

That 1921 is spectacular, Mike! It looks very clean for the grade and seems to be close to DMPL. Here is mine:

 

PCGS MS63PL CAC

 

[3keepSECRET]

 

 

 

[3keepSECRET]

Here's mine:

 

 

 

This was recently CAC'd

 

 

...and this baby is probably one of the Nicest 21PL's I have seen yet...She looks GEM by a mile

[RWB]

Agreed --- really nice looking 1921.

[3keepSECRET]

...newp received today...very happy, a bit crusty in the denticles with very nice mirrors. Definitely the deepest of the 3 I own

 

 

 

 

[physics-fan3.14]

Looks like nice mirrors on that one. Congrats.

[JIM F.]

Those are all nice. Do any branch mint 21 morgan pls exist?

[RWB]

There are proof like 1921 Morgans known from all mints. Suggest you checkout the variety listings on vamworld.com.

[physics-fan3.14]

Those are all nice. Do any branch mint 21 morgan pls exist?

 

Yes. For the 1921, the P is most common (around 1000 graded PL or DPL by NGC), D is harder to find (a bit over 200 PL/DPL), and S is expensive (19 PL, 1 DPL). If you add in teh PCGS and ANACS numbers, even the S mint wouldn't really be considered "rare." However, because demand for Morgan PL's is so high, the branch PLs are quite expensive.

[messydesk]

Relative to other Morgan dollar dates, the 1921-S is one of the rarest in PL. Relative to other types, where PL coins are few and far between for any date, perhaps it isn't.