Lets talk about my Peace Dollar

Here's the deal.
I have this 1923-D peace dollar. In hand, this thing is booming luster and appears to be MS.

Then I took some images of it, and notice something very disturbing.
It appears to have some series polishing lines.
Of course, I figured it took a terribly abrasive cleaning.

But what I keep coming back to is how the coin looks in hand. The luster is nothing like any harshly cleaned coin I have seen in hand. It doesn't have that "shiny" look and is full of luster. I can't see any of these lines in hand. However, I do see a "cloudiness" where some of the lines are present.

So my question is:
Is there any possibility at all that these are actually from an extremely polished die?

I found plenty of examples of serious die polish lines on Morgans.
However, on all of the examples I found, the die polish lines are in the fields only and not on the devices.

From vam world:
view page here
"In the photo below, you can see why the polishing lines are sometimes confused as scratches from
the abrasive cleaning of a coin."


"As you can see in the photos below, the polishing lines in the fields of this VAM1i are raised above the surface of the coin. They run up to, but not over, the raised features of the coin."









My Peace Dollar:
I used various lighting techniques and intensity to try and give you a better idea.
Again, although very noticeable in these images, that is not the case when looking at the coin in hand.
It looks like any other MS peace dollar with nice luster, in hand.








The scratches do not appear to go over the devices.
However, the devices themselves have some areas with the lines, but they are always contained within the devices and do not continue onto the fields.




It also has this die crack, which i could not find listed in the VAM's for this year/mm.
Which I will name the fish hook VAM.








What do you think?
Backup your answer with some reasons why you think that way please.
I would really like to hear from those folks who are fairly knowledgeable on the topic of die polishing.
Are the devices never polished?
Do they polish in certain patterns on the fields?

I really don't care if this coin is harshly cleaned or has awesome die polish lines.
I would really prefer to know how to determine the difference in general.


-g

 

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I don't know anything about this but from nothing more than looking at the photos you've provided - it looks to me like the lines on your coin come from different direction with no pattern and miss the devices. There do look to be lines on her face and neck from the photos.

the morgan has lines that generally run around the outside of the coin in a circle. Look at the area between the T and Y in your coin and after the Y. To me, that looks like someone was wiping where they could get access to.

As I said, I don't know anything on the topic but they look like different circumstances to me.

 

I tend to agree Yacorie.
Overall, the sheer amount of lines is strange. I doubt any scenario where a die polish is needed, would require so much. Then again, this is why I would like to be educated on it.
I am curious in general about die polishing on the devices.

Here are a couple examples I have where I know for sure it's die polish lines, but once again, only in the fields.

 

I know that occasionally die polish lines are found on the devices - it all depends on how vigorous the polisher was. So finding those lines on the devices does not necessarily indicate whizzing or scrubbing.

 

Agreed. But holy smokes, could a polisher be that vigorous?

 

Yeah, absolutely. I've seen a few Kennedys like that in PCGS slabs, and I know PCGS is better at differentiating the two than I am.

 

No need to be sorry Doug. I suspected as much.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

Looks like that poor thing angered someone armed with a Dremel...

 

Well, I'll have to trust you on that, Doug. The amount of conflicting information you get on this forum is ridiculous.

 

What about Jefferson's shoulder and collar????

 

Easiest way to differentiate the two;

Die scratches are raised off the coin's surface (like the devices) because they were abrasions to the die itself. So when the planchets were struck into coins, the metal seeped into these tiny crevices on the die face.

Abrasions from cleaning, however, are recessed.

 

You make it sound like it's easy to tell if the lines are raised or recessed.

 

Even examining the coin under the weakest loupe will give you the answer...

 

Someone one pointed me in the right direction regarding die polish lines on the devices.
It does happen.

Here is a MS 66
From this CU thread



Here are more all over the forehead, neck and face.
From vam world

 

Like I said, I've seen it on Kennedys in PCGS slabs. I wish I had saved the images.

 

Are those photos or scans of your coin? I mention that because the light doesn't seem to lay right and on white coins like this that's typical of a polish, the mint flow lines having been disturbed.

 

I hope you have not bought it or them. They just do not look right. Have you measured and weight them?

 

It's one coin (1923 D Peace dollar) and it's genuine.