I would judge the coin as nicely circulated but cleaned down to its bare metal with patina, toning and otherwise natural surface removed. How did it look right after it was removed from the ground? Do you have before pictures to compare the coin to?
I would judge it to be a terrific find. Congratulations! Popping big silver out of the ground is a thrill, isn't it? As to cleaning... well... sometime's that's just a "necessary evil" with dug coins. I don't think your half looks bad. Give it a few years in your finds album and it'll retone.
@Chip Kirkpatrick ...I “judge” this really good MD find as a VF35...can you divulge where you found it?…Spark
I bet he found it in the ground. Sorry, couldn't resist (I've been told not to give up my day job for a career in comedy )
I judge detector finds to a whole different set of standards than mainstream "store-bought" collector coins. It's all about the story. You don't get to choose what condition something's in when it comes out of the ground after being buried for decades or centuries. You take what Lady Luck and your own skills and persistence offer you. And then the finds often require some cleaning (though hopefully that gets done carefully enough). I focus more on how uncommon it is to find something. Silver halves are not common detector finds, and rank high as nice finds, even if the same coin would not be as interesting to a traditional collector. There is stuff I wouldn't look twice at in a dealer's case that I would nonetheless be very happy to dig. In one of my videos (just after the 5:00 mark here) you can hear me get way too excited over finding a Barber dime which I knew all too well was worth barely over a dollar at the time. Ditto the Indian cent later on in that video. Neither were valuable, but both were old and very fun finds. I found only five silver halves in all my years detecting: an 1894-O Barber, a 1926-S Oregon trail commem (that was freaky and exciting, let me tell you!), 1937 and 1944 Walkers, and a 1952 Franklin. And one 1971 clad Kennedy. Not too many halves hit the dirt without being subsequently rediscovered and picked back up. Treasure that half, @Chip Kirkpatrick. If you're the one who found it, it was your destiny. I wouldn't take $100 or even $500 for some of my finds which most folks wouldn't pay ten bucks for. I'm quite sentimental about the adventure they represent. I've never sold my dug coins. Here's another example of what I mean. I spent over $3,000 for this medieval Edward I penny, if you count the airfare and expenses it cost me to travel to England and go dig it up out of a farm field. Mind you, I have bought equal or better Edward I medieval pennies for $35-40. Was it worth spending 100x as much to go and dig my own, and be the first person in almost 700 years to touch it? You bet it was! It was an adventure I'll remember for the rest of my days.
It's been cleaned. Did you find it like that, in that condition or did you clean it. It's a nice find no matter what but it's a details grade, junk value coin now.
‘thanks and I agree with you. I don’t sell or trade my finds. Cheapens the experience. I do donate many to schools, museums and libraries. my best find has been this antique Scottish medallion I found on the Florida / Georgia state lines. This has references to William Wallace , Robert Bruis ( Bruce) and MY FAMILY. The phrase TOUCH AND I PEARCE was our motto during the Wallace Wars. Then the phrase I MAK SICKER (I MAKE SURE) has been our motto since 1306 when one of our boys help Bruis murder Red Comyn at the alter of the Greyfriars Church which allowed Bruis to take the throne. Our crest is a hand holding aloft a bloody dagger. (If you’re interested in knowing more, on YouTube search CHIP KIRKPATRICK SHED). I’ve been offered some major bucks for it but it’s not for sale. Next year I’m probably taking it to the family castle for display and study.
That is AMAZING. Looks 18th century or very early 19th century? Where on the FL/GA line, if I may ask? You need not reveal site specifics. I'm merely wondering county/city/general whereabouts. I live in SE GA near the FL line, you see. But that was already apparent in the stuff I posted. Im just very curious about that incredible find. In any event, I'm 99% retired as a detectorist, for physical reasons. The way that "dagger" is engraved, it looks like a metal detector.