Got any coins you bought and then later realized they were a variety? Here's my latest: 1856 seated dime, probably XF45, that I got off eBay for $25. It's the doubled die obverse (look at the shield and LIBERTY banner as well as her staff). It's going to PCGS with an economy order. In the end I'll have $63 in it, and it'll be probably be worth $95-$125. Let's see yours!
I recently bought a lettered-edge 1836 Bust half. I estimate VF35, maybe XF40. $105. On the Reverse side is a very long circular die crack encompassing about 3/4 of the coin. After I got it home, that die crack made it easier to identify the variety: O-104a. That makes it an R.3 ("Scarce") -- a nice bonus for a high-mintage Bust. Very pleased! Under the "S" at 12 o'clock, this circular die crack extends clockwise down along the eagle's wing... Same coin, different light. The die crack extends counter-clockwise under STATES thru UNITED...
years ago, when I first started collecting, I bought this seated half on eBay. It is nearly PL, but some genius attempted to polish the obv. fields! Anyway, it is a doubled date, the marker being a large die chip above the 4 in the base of Liberty. Sorry I don't have a close up.
Well this one was accidental as I put together a Franklin collection years ago and decided to put them in an album . Dug them from the safe and found this just the other day.
This was a big one for me. I paid $20 for this coin just because it was a civil war date and original. After I left, I took a loupe to it and found that it was the die crack CSA Obverse! Probably a $250-$350 coin.
1840/1840 wb-104 NGC XF45, NGC shows a pop of 2, mine not included since it doesn't have the variety on the label.
I pick this proof Roosevelt up yesterday for a buck. 1968 S ,It has a really nice golden tone from the rim to the center. Well that What caught my eye......... however once I scoped her out bingo A proof RPM -002 .
This is the original seller's pic that I chanced for About $70.00. This is the same coin re-holdered...
I posted this one in The toned coin thread but it fits this one too. I bought this one years ago for the color and pulled it out often to just look at it. The whole time I had it I was actively searching for varieties and never really looked at it with a loupe. A few years back I photographed it for the toning and only when processing the pic did I notice the DDR. This coin ended up being the discovery coin for 1934P-1DO-004 on CopperCoins http://www.coppercoins.com/lincoln/diestate.php?date=1934&die_id=1934p1dr004&die_state=mds toner 1934 by stoneman227, on Flickr
I read somewhere that these were likely true accidents, caused by failure to follow procedure when preparing a die press for a different denomination. Apparently with the equipment of the time, if an operator didn't remove both dies of the a previously struck denomination first, and instead for convenience sake replaced one, then cranked the press a half turn to get easier access to the other, a mixed denomination clash was likely.