Would like to have one 0

[jimbo27]

Saw this on Ebay auction, I know nothing about this coin, but would like to have one. Any comments will be helpful as I dont even know if it is real, thanks jimbo

[Coinbuf]

Too nice of condition not to be in a TPG holder, that seller is experienced enough to know that a coin with AU details like this would bring more if in a top TPG holder.   Not my area of knowledge but my sense is that there is something wrong, at the very least it has been cleaned.

[Mr.Bill347]

Coinbuf, I noticed what appeared to be a die crack on the reverse. Even another bad sign

[Mr.Bill347]

I would be more inclined to purchase an PCGS graded VF35 than take a chance on this raw coin.

Edited August 3, 2022 by Mr.Bill347

[Sandon]

   If I understand your statement that you "know nothing about this coin" to mean that you cannot even identify it by type, it is a Capped Bust, close collar strike quarter dollar.  This exact type of quarter was struck each year from 1831 through 1838, with the first Seated Liberty quarters also being struck in and dated 1838. Coins of each date of this type are usually available from coin dealers, with the July 2022 issue of Coin World monthly listing each date at $75-80 in well-worn Good, $150-200 Very Fine, and $350-400 Extremely Fine.  About Uncirculated coins retail for $700 or more, and Uncirculated coins (scarce) go for four or more figures depending upon the mint state grade.  I suggest you refer to a recent standard or deluxe edition of the "Redbook", the NGC Coin Explorer, or PCGS Coinfacts for more information. Always "buy the book before the coin" or nowadays at least look at the free online references!

   The specimen whose photos you show appears to be genuine--though I cannot guarantee that it is--and with About Uncirculated details, though likely chemically "cleaned" and not worth the list price for an unimpaired AU.  The die cracks that are apparently of concern to some of the other responders frequently occur on these coins and actually helped me identify this one as a late die state of an 1836 Browning die variety no. 2, a scarcer, though not rare, 1836 die variety. (Various elements of dies of earlier U.S. coins were punched or engraved by hand, and some specialists collect them not only by date but by die variety based on the positions and styles of letters, numbers, etc.)

[Oldhoopster]

@jimbo27

One way to quickly learn a little about a lot of US and Colonial coins is to buy a copy of the Redbook.  It has a short paragraph or two about most diff types.  Also has mintages, weights, compositions, pics of major varieties, some basic grading info, and lots of other stuff. 

If you just paged through it, I'd expect you would find other interesting coins that you didn't know existed.  Well worth the $15 price tag

[Coinbuf]

On 8/3/2022 at 2:57 PM, Mr.Bill347 said:

Coinbuf, I noticed what appeared to be a die crack on the reverse. Even another bad sign

 

No the crack is not an issue per se.   The problem for me is that I do not know the series well enough to know if that die crack is correct for that year.   Many times counterfeiters will use a reverse of another (wrong) year when creating their work.   So the die cracks can help in identifying and verifying a correct year die marriage vs an incorrect one.   But as I said I'm not experienced enough with this series to know the die marriages.

[J P M]

There is also  die cracks on the obverse of that coin. I also do not know enough to say anything other than the fact that it looks way to nice like almost  AU55-58 It would be worth big bucks if it was the real deal.

[EagleRJO]

I don't think it would be worth a lot, not cleaned. It would probably come back Details like most are saying.  There are a few listings for similar AU Details ones just sitting since May or June where they are asking $350 to $400, and completed bids/sales (not listings) are going for around $250 to $300.  Both a significant reduction from list.

I am coming up on a few very expensive Morgans for the complete circulation set I'm collecting, and I am really thinking about problem or details coins as an option due to the significant reduction.

[Most collectors don't want the dreaded Details label/coins, so it's probably going to someone who (1) doesn't know what they are buying or (2) they know and need to fill a specific gap in a collection at a lower price. And good luck selling it cause then you would have to hope one of those buyer types comes along just to break even or limit ur loss.]

Edited August 5, 2022 by EagleRJO

[VKurtB]

I buy raw (not graded) coins all the time, but never remotely or over the Internet. Is this a lettered edge or a reeded edge? The reeded 1836 is a rarity. Edit: Ooops, it’s a quarter, not a half. 

Edited August 5, 2022 by VKurtB

[EagleRJO]

On 8/4/2022 at 10:31 PM, VKurtB said:

I buy raw (not graded) coins all the time, but never remotely or over the Internet

At coin dealers and coin shows?  I am having trouble finding raw ones locally for rarer years/mints.  There are a few shops around me which just seem to carry the more common raw ones.

On 8/4/2022 at 10:31 PM, VKurtB said:

Is this a lettered edge or a reeded edge? The reeded 1836 is a rarity.

Do you mean the lettered edge would be a rarity?  I thought all those earlier 1815-1838 Capped Bust quarters are supposed to have a reeded edge.

[VKurtB]

On 8/4/2022 at 10:08 PM, EagleRJO said:

At coin dealers and coin shows?  I am having trouble finding raw ones locally for rarer years/mints.  There are a few shops around me which just seem to carry the more common raw ones.

Do you mean the lettered edge would be a rarity?  I thought all those earlier 1815-1838 Capped Bust quarters are supposed to have a reeded edge.

Yes, I initially thought (assumed, really) that when I’m viewing a capped bust with that much meat on it, it’s a half dollar. And I speak of estate sales at public auction, which are TWO things: 1) the source of most of my acquisitions of better coins, and 2) the main reason I still travel back to Pennsylvania. This idea that brick and mortar dealers or shows are the only alternative to the Internet, well, let’s just say that I appreciate the lack of competition at Pennsylvania auctions. At one local club show, there was a raw authentic 1916-D dime in Mint State, and at another estate auction, there was a raw 1856 Flying Eagle cent, fully Mint State. You have to be where the material is. 

Edited August 5, 2022 by VKurtB

[EagleRJO]

On 8/5/2022 at 11:05 AM, VKurtB said:

Yes, I initially thought (assumed, really) that when I’m viewing a capped bust with that much meat on it, it’s a half dollar. 

Okay NP.   Good to know that for the Capped Bust half dollars value depends on the edge type, as I might start collecting halves after Morgans.  That or Trade Dollars, but those can be pricey, so I'm not sure yet.

[VKurtB]

On 8/5/2022 at 10:13 AM, EagleRJO said:

Okay NP.   Good to know that for the Capped Bust half dollars value depends on the edge type, as I might start collecting halves after Morgans.  That or Trade Dollars, but those can be pricey, so I'm not sure yet.

In 1836 in particular. Check the mintage numbers. 

[EagleRJO]

On 8/5/2022 at 11:15 AM, VKurtB said:

In 1836 in particular. 

Ouch, and of the 1,200 how many are still around?  if I was doing a half dollar collection I would go for the 1836 lettered edge half for sure. 

Edited August 5, 2022 by EagleRJO

[Sandon]

       Regarding the 1836 quarter about which the original poster inquired, the die cracks on both sides are consistent with later states of 1836 B-2.  I realize that most of you don't have access to A.W. Browning's The Early Quarter Dollars of the United States, 1796-1838, originally published in 1925, or the 1991 reprint with comments by Walter Breen, of which I have a copy.  I'm attaching a copy of pp.150-151 regarding this variety.  The first two paragraphs on p. 151 (Browning's original text) describe the cracks; see also the comments in small type regarding states II and III.  While counterfeits showing all of these cracks could have been struck from a mold or transfer dies made from a genuine host coin, I've never heard of this being done with pieces of this series.  

   All U.S. quarters were made with reeded edges.  All half dollars before the introduction in late 1836 of the "close collar" that fits tightly around the coin as it is struck were made with lettered edges.  (Errors excluded in both cases.)  The mintage of "1,200+" still stated in the standard "Red Book" for the 1836 Reeded Edge half dollar is definitely low.  Researchers now believe that as many as 5,000 or more were struck.  I purchased one of these last year--a major acquisition--and it is in several of my registry sets with more extensive comments at 1836 REEDED United States 50C GR-1 | NGC (ngccoin.com). 

 

[jimbo27]

Thanks to all that replied, coin just sold for $501 plus $4 s&h, I did not bid on it.