Opinions on Draped Bust please!

[ImageMask]

What do think this would grade at and should I slab it?

Thanks

 

 

[McKinley-migration]

i'd call it 'sexy'

 

yeah, slab it.. the ding might hurt though

[TomB]

It appears to be a beautiful, original DBH and I like it quite a bit. In my opinion, this is a choice VF coin, a VF30 or VF35. If you are interested in selling it, I might be very well interested in buying it since I like this design very much. Certification would not hurt this coin at all, but is not required if you intend to sell or keep it.

[ImageMask]

Thanks. That ding looks much worse in the enlarged scan and actully effects only a quarter of the thickness.

[ImageMask]

Tom,

Thanks for your input. I inherited the coins a few years and they hold too much sentimental vlaue to sell. I am just now finding time to educate myself on coins as I have mostly collected comics.

[McKinley-migration]

if you're going to keep it, and it was inherited, then i wouldn't slab it.. whomever you got it from used to hold it in their hands and daydream.. why not keep up the tradition

[TomB]

That's a terrific coin to have inherited, and please take proper care of it, which it seems like you are doing.

[ImageMask]

Thanks again guys. I am grateful for any/all info.

[Bruceswar]

WOW! Nice coin! Looks just like mine from China.. OK just Kidding!!! Smoking looking coin with a very orginal skin. You should be very very happy to own it. I know I would be.

[EZ_E]

Very sweet indeed!

 

The 2007 Redbook lists it at $1250 in VF20. With its originality and appeal then it is probably a $1500 coin would be my guess.

[TJ'S Coins]

Great coin that oozes originality. It is definitely a keeper.

[Wihlborg]

As others have said already, you have quite a nice coin there. I would send it in to be holdered to protect and preserve its condition.

 

John

[reid1836]

Beautiful coin !!!!!!!!! I`d give it VF-35 to EF-40. Very nice piece !!!!!!!

[Mozin]

The rim ding might cause the grading service to body bag the coin. Otherwise, I would expect and XF grade from NGC. I would certainly submit the coin for grading.

[supertooth]

Image Mask-----What a lovely 'original colored' coin. Not a person on these boards would object to owning it. Coin is IMHO a possible XF coin graded by NGC. I do not think that the ding would keep it from being slabbed. In any event, if you did ever sell it----whether raw or slabbed----hold out for XF money---you will get it for such a nice piece. I would definitely slab it and spend the extra 7 bucks to get the Overton number placed on the slab. Great coin from an old collection no doubt. Bob [supertooth]

[TomB]

The Overton variety for your coin is an O.102, which is an R2 meaning that there are estimated to be 500-1,000 of this variety extant.

[goose3]

no way that tiny ding keeps it out of ANY reputable holder.

 

nice coin raw or slabbed.

[TomB]

There are two things I forgot to mention before and that is that the small rim ding will not hinder the coin's ability to grade at NGC or PCGS and that the coin is not, in my opinion, a $1,200-$1,500 piece unless it goes EF40, which I don't think likely. I buy nice DBHs in this grade level when I find them, and I recently purchased a completely original and attractive 1807 DBH graded by NGC as EF40 that is clearly superior, in terms of remaining detail, to this coin and even then the cost was less than the estimate provided. Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing the coin and I'm not saying it isn't valuable, I just think the price range suggested is a bit high even if it grades EF40, which I don't believe it should.

[ImageMask]

Thanks again to everyone whos replied. I take it the Draped Bust must be a fairly popular coin to collect by the number of replies.

 

 

The Overton variety for your coin is an O.102, which is an R2 meaning that there are estimated to be 500-1,000 of this variety extant.

 

Tom, do you have a on-line source that explains this overton stuff? I found nothing in any of the books I have. Is there a large number of collectors that try to collect all varieties of a certain coin?

[TomB]

It's funny, just this week I put up a post with advice on where to find information on these early half dollars. The Overton variety is named in honor of Al Overton who wrote the first truly usable and exhaustive variety identification manual for early half dollars. Each die pair (obverse and reverse) is given an Overton number and a society tracks an estimate of how many of each die pair are extant. A copy of my post appears below, with hyperlinks to the sites mentioned. Before the copy-and-paste, though, I will answer the question about the number of collectors who pursue these varieties and the answer is that this is historically an avidly collected niche market. However, for varieties that are more common, such as your DBH, there are sufficient quantities to go around and there is little pressure on them. Therefore, they are viewed as type coins.

 

If you are interested in early half dollars then you are in for a bounty of terrific literature.

 

The classic reference for variety identification is United States Early Half Dollars and Die Varieties 1794-1836 by Al Overton. Unfortunately, the newly published fourth edition of this classic has the name of his son-in-law as the author, Don Parsley, this is a travesty since the work is nearly entirely that of Al Overton while Don Parsley has updated it since Al's death in 1970. I own both the third (1990) and fourth (2005) editions, but I have found that I do not even open the fourth edition because it has so little extra that was not in the third edition. The first and second editions are clearly not as useful and I would suggest you save your money and buy one of these later editions. You may find these editions on ebay or online through Stack's or Sheridan Downey. Though you should be able to find these at $50-$65, plan on spending at least $35 for a used edition and up to $85 for the new edition.

 

Additionally, Edgar Souders published Bust Half Fever in 1995 and a new edition, that I believe is greatly expanded and has more information, was published in 2005. This book contains much more history of the time and delves more into how the coins were used, made and collected. The book is terrific. You may find the paper or electronic version on ebay or through Stack's. I believe the second edition is approximately $85 while the first edition, which is long out of print, will likely run you about $115.

 

More specialized books include Keith Davignon's Contemporary Counterfeit Capped Bust Half Dollars written in 1996, which as its name implies, deals only with counterfeits passed off in the channels of commerce. It may be pricey at about $50 for this esoteric niche, but it is terrific, too. Jules Reiver published the ultimate Variety Identification Manual for Reeded Edge Half Dollars 1836-1839 in 1988 but this is nearly impossible to find in print and I purchased my copy after looking for several years and paid about $50. Heritage now offers this manual online and free to read. You may also want to invest in the ANS publication titled America's Silver Coinage 1794-1891 from the ANS Coinage of the Americas Conference in 1986. The book itself was published in 1987 and can be had for $15. It contains myriad intellectual research articles on early silver coinage.

 

Then there are the specialized price guides that are dedicated to this niche and include Bust Half Quotes by Fricke and Karoleff, Auction and Mail Bid Prices Realized for Bust Half Dollars 1794-1839 by Herrman and Downey Mail Bid Sales by Herrman and Downey. Each of these is $20-$30.

 

There is also the online resource by the Bust Half Nut Club, though the use of all the resources on this site requires membership to the BHNC and this is restricted to those who have at least 100 different Overton variety Bust half dollars. The John Reich Collectors Society also offers some online content, but their journal is excellent.

 

I hope this was enough information.

[supertooth]

Image Mask-----The reason for the large number of replies is because you have an outstanding coin that is one that has never been fooled with----never been cleaned or dipped or otherwise messed with. Those of us who collect such kinds of coins are impressed with these coins that once in awhile turn up.

 

United States Half Dollar Die Varieties----1794---1836 by Donald L. Parsley---costs about 80 bucks retail and is about 750 pages. It is in it's fourth edition. Bob [supertooth]

[James_OldeTowne]

That's a sensational coin, and is right on the cusp between VF-35 and EF-40. The rim ding might weigh the grade in favor of VF-35.

 

James