Morgan dollar reverse 0

[Pocket Changer]

It seems odd to me that the eagle on this Morgan dollar is very dirty, and that the wings are barely visible, yet the words are still clearly legible, I guess that's not so uncommon, especially for coin like this.

Even though this is a easily obtainable coin that is in poor grade, it is still cool to look at, though I wouldn't call something obtainable common necessarily, as this is the first I've ever seen this coin in person. In fact, I'm sure most non-coin collectors don't see this coin on a daily basis, so while it might be common for coin collectors, I wouldn't call it common for laymen in general. Same thing with my previous 1880 silver Morgan dollar, I had never seen one until I had obtained it, so definitely wouldn't call it common. I'm only 24 though, so it could just be that I haven't lived long enough to witness many Morgan dollars in person, and I'm certainly not searching for them; I've never bought a coin in my life. Either way, this is still a beautiful coin, with most of the details intact and visible. This is yet another coin from my grandfathers 'collection'. This was not meant as a rant, I just felt like putting it in there.

 

[Coinbuf]

Go to any coin show and you will see thousands if not tens of thousands of Morgan dollars.   Yes, it is common for non-collectors to not see these given that silver coins are not in general circulation, but Morgan dollars are common as dirt in the numismatic world.   And yes, they are a beautiful coin, which is why they are one of the most sought after and collected coins of all US coins.

Edited April 4, 2023 by Coinbuf

[EagleRJO]

The rim as well as the eagle's head, breast and wings (particularly the upper part of the wings) are high points of the design on the reverse.  That is what you look at first when evaluating the grade for the reverse of that coin.  For a considerably worn Morgan it would not be surprising that you could barely see the wings.

Attached is an example of a Morgan graded G-4 with the kind of wear to the eagle on the reverse outlined above.  Note how the lettering and other elements are not significantly worn like the upper wings and head, as the rim and noted high points prevent that.

Edited April 9, 2023 by EagleRJO

[Pocket Changer]

On 4/4/2023 at 1:52 PM, Coinbuf said:

Go to any coin show and you will see thousands if not tens of thousands of Morgan dollars.   Yes, it is common for non-collectors to not see these given that silver coins are not in general circulation, but Morgan dollars are common as dirt in the numismatic world.   And yes, they are a beautiful coin, which is why they are one of the most sought after and collected coins of all US coins.

I agree that they are beautiful, though mine is a 1902, which NGC says is fairly common date for these, especially in lower grades, so I doubt any collector would pay much for my coin, even though most of the coin is legible and with how collectible they are. It also doesn't look at all silver, which is odd, but I guess that's what happens when a silver coin gets extremely dirtied!

[Just Bob]

The coin looks like it is in some kind of mount. What is that?

[Coinbuf]

On 4/4/2023 at 12:32 PM, Pocket Changer said:

I agree that they are beautiful, though mine is a 1902, which NGC says is fairly common date for these, especially in lower grades, so I doubt any collector would pay much for my coin, even though most of the coin is legible and with how collectible they are. It also doesn't look at all silver, which is odd, but I guess that's what happens when a silver coin gets extremely dirtied!

Yes that dark almost black color is called terminal toning.   Once the toning reaches this stage it is so thick that it cannot be removed without damaging the surface of the coin because it has somewhat bonded to the surface.

[EagleRJO]

On 4/4/2023 at 3:32 PM, Pocket Changer said:

I doubt any collector would pay much for my coin, even though most of the coin is legible and with how collectible they are.

It is still significantly worn, whereas it is likely that for not much more a collector could acquire one that is just slightly worn.  Which would you choose?

And they are popular with collectors because coins in relatively good shape for most of the series are still readily available at a low cost, with maybe just about two dozen or so in the series that are higher priced.

And I would describe the very dark discoloration on your coin as severe tarnish, not dirt that can be more readily cleaned with acetone or conserved by a TPG.

[powermad5000]

Here is an example of a Morgan I own with heavy toning. It is not dirty. Silver depending on how it is stored or not protected will develop dark toning over time.

[Hoghead515]

Morgans are very common. If you walk into a pawn shop that sells silver you will see several. Theres a pawn shop in my very small hometown that has a bin of worn Morgans with literally hundreds of them all piled up. Those in the pile are just worth the silver content. They have several nicer ones for a little higher price.  There was over 650 million minted in total. There are thousands of them still out there in uncirculated condition. If you want to see some in person just stop at a coin shop, pawn shop, or somewhere that buys silver and you will see several. Even though they are common I still really like them. They are very beautiful and one of the fewer older coins you can buy an uncirculated example at a reasonable price. 

[Pocket Changer]

On 4/4/2023 at 3:37 PM, Just Bob said:

The coin looks like it is in some kind of mount. What is that?

It is a minute. It came mounted on that, it was my grandfathers. I don't know whether he bought it like that with the mount, but my guess is he mounted it after buying it, as he was not a coin collector in any sense, and he probably thought the coin would look good in the mount, and would be more easily noticed. Like I said, he was not a coin collector in any sense of the term, and this is the way I acquired it. It does make it hard to move the coin without touching the center of the coin, as the sides are mostly touching the mount.

[Pocket Changer]

On 4/4/2023 at 4:01 PM, Coinbuf said:

Yes that dark almost black color is called terminal toning.   Once the toning reaches this stage it is so thick that it cannot be removed without damaging the surface of the coin because it has somewhat bonded to the surface.

You learn something new every day, thanks! To me the eagle looks ugly, but the rest of the reverse isn't quite so ugly, but that's just my opinion. That's the asking.