Post a seriously damaged coin that you still like

Cleaned, polished, badly corroded, holed, deeply scratched, graffiti, bent, etc...
But that doesn't stop it from being a treasured part of your collection.

 

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It barely makes Good and has graffiti dating from the year 1845. It cost me solid XF money (Plus my max bid was almost twice what I got it for). But it was the last (achievable by me) die marriage for my 1827 set. It's estimated that only about 35 or so examples exist in any grade--most of which are damaged. When I bought it back in 2009 I had been looking for an affordable O-144 for the previous 19 years.


The inscription in the upper right field reads "Cadet Robertson 1845. In the left (behind Liberty) Roberston is repeated.

A note: As gentlemen military cadets were expected to never be completely without funds. Thus it became a common practice to carry a pocket piece--often from one's birth year. A search of West Point archives comes up with Beverly Robertson--born June 1827, appointed to USMA1845, and graduated class of 1849. He went on to become a CSA general during the Civil War. One has to wonder if this was his coin.

Many of you know that I am "kinda" nutty about 1827 bust halves--okay, so "kinda" doesn't cut it. This one will probably be the last one I ever buy since the last 3 remaining die marriages for the year are all high R-6 (O-137), R-7 (O-148) or R-8 (O-149) coins.

 

First one is a two cent that was dug up beside a river in Columbia South Carolina where it is known that General Sherman held an encampment. Badly corroded but I like to believe this one is a genuine piece of civil war history.



Second is a Spanish cobb that I was fortunate to find on a beach on the southern Carolina coast not long after hurricane Hugo battered us. Date is worn off and the piece is black from years in the sea. But I dearly love this old piece of history.


Finally the most damaged coin I have. I picked it up in a parking lot last month. I had to study it closely under magnification to confirm it was a cent. I just like it because I never have seen any coin quite this abused.

 

This extremely rare quinarius of the Roman Emperor Galba has seen better days. But it is a quinarius, which was a very unusual and seldom minted denomination (especially by the late 1st century AD), and there's probably less than 50 of this particular type in existence out there (at least based on how seldom they seem to come up for auction)...so it's worthy of love and appreciation even if it does look like a whole Roman legion marched on top of it.



One in VF condition runs for around $900, but I can live with the corrosion and wear on this F condition specimen at $200.

 

First coin I ever saved. The clerk handed it to my grandfather in his change. He put it in my hand and said "Hang on to that, you don't see them to often now." I was 9.

 

Here is a coin damaged by an ancient Greek merchant. If you look at the 4 o'clock position, part of the edge has been clipped off. This was done by a suspicious merchant sometime around 300 BC in some Greek town or city near modern day Ukraine. He probably thought the coin was a silver-plated forgery with a bronze core. His suspicions were for nothing, as this coin is silver through and through, but 2,300 years later we can still appreciate the moment of joy when he discovered he wasn't cheated and he had a good coin. Sadly though, that does mean the coin has a nice gash where he clipped it rather aggressively, almost causing the flan to crack.

Makes for a good story though.

 

Can you even read the date on that matron head?

 

I believe that was a better year for the IHC. It seems that it was used as a washer or something similar. The reverse is worn flat yet the obverse looks to be in fairly decent shape. That’s one of those coins you wish could tell it’s story.

 

This guy has some corrosion, probably from being stuck in the bilge water of the Montreal for a few months. At best there’s 15,000 out there.

 

I don't own any cleaned, polished, damaged, graffiti'd, or otherwise problem coins. I will not buy them, I will not own them if you gave them to me, and I'll certainly not show them off. These sorts of problems are damage, and I hate intentionally damaged coins. You could give me a 1913 nickel into which you'd engraved your initials, and I'd sell it the next day. You could gift me the Dexter 1804 Dollar, into which that ridiculous idiot inscribed his initials, and I'd refuse to own it.

These coins are damaged and worthless, in my opinion.

 

Well I have two my Grandfather carried it everyday and my first Doubled Die. LOL
Dave

 

I love this Half Cent, which is great condition, considering. I bought it as damaged/scratched, but as Paddy54 pointed out, I now think it was made into a Freemason token:

 

This one has a prime spot in the...

...bag of coins to go back to the bank.

I can't believe that there are 2018 cents in this condition already! (not my favorite coin, btw)

 

Does "terminal toning" count as damage? I know it does for modern coins, but I don't think us ancients folks see it the same way.

But since most of you modern collectors would consider this damage, here is a dark jet black silver beauty from the 4rth Century BC. Yes, that's right, I said silver!

It also so happens to be my latest coin.

 

@Idries Pappas
No

 

@Randy Abercrombie
That is a better date and I would like to hear the story also.