Morgan Dollar 0

[EagleRJO]

I came across the attached raw 1891-CC Morgan Dollar which appears legit and in the XF to AU grade range (current market grading). I was thinking AU at first because of the limited wear for things like the hair, cap details and eagles breast feathers, but there are a number of dings particularly around the rim which I think knocks it down a peg to maybe an XF or XF+.

All the features and characters appear correct, and it looks like it may be a VAM-4 with the date shifted left and mint mark shifted right, without die cracks near the "We Trust" on the reverse but it could be an early die state. The only thing that bothered me a bit was a little greenish brown discoloration, particularly on the reverse, but that may just be from a light cleaning as some point which is common. Any thoughts or comments?

[Sandon]

    The coin has no better than XF details. The obverse shows significant wear on the hair, cotton bolls, and leaves and on the reverse on the eagle's breast and head. I can see no mint luster, which should appear in the fields on an AU coin that isn't more darkly toned than this one. The photos are inadequate to make any meaningful evaluation of the coin's originality or authenticity. (Remember that counterfeit dies are often modeled from genuine coins, so the die variety isn't determinative.)  I do see some (1) "shininess" and (2) indications of streaks that at different lightings and angles than shown in the photos could be revealed as hairlines, either of which would designate the coin as "cleaned".  I would never buy such a coin without the opportunity for in-person examination or, at a bare minimum, better photos in terms of lighting and more photos showing views from different angles.

[Coinbuf]

I do not think there is any doubt that this coin has been cleaned, there are visible vertical hairlines on the cheek from the eye to the neck area.   And the tone (for lack of a better description) is funky and just looks off, especially the reverse.   I agree that the coin has XF details, if you are considering it as a purchase I too would suggest you request more photos, and only buy if the seller has a good return policy.

Edited to add:  Price wise this coin should not cost much, the last five certified NGC/PCGS XF45 examples sold (via Heritage) for an average of $285, and over the past two years several certified XF40's have sold in the $130 to $200 range.

Edited September 30, 2022 by Coinbuf

[RWB]

Barely EF --- where did the OP get the idea that this could possibly be "AU" ?

[EagleRJO]

XF and possibly cleaned lightly agreed. I only buy from online dealers with a solid reputation and no questions returns if at a fair price. I'm more concerned with no die indicators to use as a guide (difficult to replicate) and the off color. I'm on the fence with this one.