1878 Philadelphia morgan dollar 1 1

[Yancey1997]

Any professionals that can take a look at this coin and tell me if it looks like authentic 

[JKK]

It's a valid question. The coin looks odd; color weird, stars muddy, level of detail on devices is not that consistent with the circulated look of the fields. I suppose the pro-authenticity stance would see the deformed UNUM as a PMD impact wound. However, what is on the back of UNUM is where the AR of 'dollar' is, if I'm mentally flipping the coin over properly. Normally it's pretty hard to hit a coin hard enough to mess it up without doing something to the reverse, kind of the way big meteor strikes on small planetoids can send an impact wave clear through them (Mercury has a huge one of these). So I'm really not sure which way to lean.

[RonnieR131]

 These are fakes to compare.

[Greenstang]

It is a counterfeit. It is showing a 1879 reverse.  Where did you get it ?
Also do NOT hold coins in your hand like that. If it was genuine you could get oil
from your skin on it which could cause marks.

Edited May 7 by Greenstang

[Sandon]

   There are genuine 1878 7tf Morgan dollars with the "Reverse of 1879" (scarcer than the "Reverse of 1878", but not rare), but this one is a fairly obvious (likely Chinese) counterfeit as indicated by, for example, the unusually narrow obverse rim, mushy details, odd color and lack of bagmarks. 

   If you thought that the coin might have been genuine, you shouldn't have been holding it in your bare hand.

[powermad5000]

I don't need to look at the reverse really in this case. The obverse speaks for the rest of the coin. It is a counterfeit and not a good one. Without typing out the full laundry list just on the obverse, the date numerals are not correct, the motto lettering is uneven, and the denticles are not fully formed. The overall detail is severely lacking the fine details that should be present on these being the first year of the series.

Even though the others have already stated, never lay a coin on your bare hand. Always handle coins by their edges.

[RWB]

The item illustrated is a counterfeit and not marked "COPY" as required by law.