1887-S Morgan

Purchased yesterday PCGS Genuine, Cleaned, AU detail. Value ? Also, i'm in the beginning stages of learning to grade and would like to know the impact of cleaned coins in general and on this one specifically, both in terms of value and desirability. If cleaning does not result in noticeable damage and improves eye appeal, why does cleaning even matter. Education appreciated

 

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I paid $47 with shipping.

 

Hi There,
Welcome to Cointalk! Nice coin.... I would say a 35-40 dollar value. Cleaning is very bad for a coin, it wears key parts of it down, a way to avoid buying a cleaned coin ( if it is not slabbed and labeled already) is too look at the surface of the coin, you will see a lot of very tiny scratches in the coin and it will be worn out on higher places. Over time, if it was silver polished....it may form some unattractive toning. You never want to clean or buy a cleaned coin, It can take away a lot of value.
Here is an example: Cleaned--------------------Cleaned and Toned

 

Thank you Noah, exactly the type of cleaning info I am looking for. On my coin, I see what looks like splotching around the rim especially the lower left quadrant. Is that also a sign of cleaning or something else?

 

Cleaning removes Mint luster and gives the coin a dull appearance. It can also cause scratches and wear. Value in the range of the mid thirties.

 

yes, I am pretty sure this is a sing of cleaning too, possibly uneven cleaning.

 

So far I have learned, in addition to affecting eye appeal, cleaning removes mint luster, and scratches facilitates wear, especially on high points of the design. This purchase has also taught me to use PhotoScape for greater magnification (than I currently possess) prior to purchase. I must say that I was aware the coin was cleaned although the scratches and splotches were barely visible on the Bay. Even so, the number of fake collectibles hitting the marketplaces has raised my concern for authenticity to a higher level and in this case overrode the cleaning flaws; it's a balancing act unless the MS grades are within budget.

 

So my question is, how do you tell the difference between marks from cleaning and bag marks? I know bag marks are typically not parallel lines, but how else are they differentiated?

 

You can tell if it is cleaned by If there is many light scratches all facing in the same direction. If it is bag marks, the lines will be spread out.

 

Is this an example of bag marks, inappropriate cleaning, or both ? It's graded MS62.

 

I would say bag marks, whatever it is graded as is probably what it is.

 

Just bag marks. That Peace Dollar has not been cleaned.

 

Thank you all for your contributions. One wee step at a time for me.

 

Okay, looking at that coin I saw lines spread out, therefore they would be bag marks.