1985 one "The American Prospector" - plz help grade!

Both of these are One Troy ounce 999. fine silver - sold by the U.S. Treasury and minted in 1985. "The American Prospector" is no longer being minted - I think 1985 was the last minting for this, which is uncirculated. Both have the name Engelhard on the back over the eagle carrying an olive branch and the U.S. flag. One has fingerprints on the front (eeks) but the other looks untarnished, however the untarnished one does have a light scratch mark across the front - probably from the plastic "purse" its in right now...or from the many times I've moved! To me, the grading for both seems to be AG-3...neither have been cleaned. It is hard to take pics of these things!

 

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By the way, I made the mistake of using only natural light (my first pics of coins) - the front/back of the coin is not dark at all...you're either seeing a reflection of myself or the camera!

 

I have several different silver bullion coins. Some have interesting designs on them like yours. Other's are older Christmas themes, or just a simple design. As long as the weight and purity is accurate, regardless of what's on them, I bought them just for the silver.

The only one that I bought for it's beauty is a Frida Kahlo 2 ounce silver that I paid a fairly hefty premium. It's gorgeous and one that I won't part with.

 

Welcome to the forum, I have a few of those prosectors also, I do not think they have a numismatic premium. I have never heard of grading silver rounds, but I am pretty raw yet so somebody might have some more experience to share.

 

These were produced by a private mint, not the U.S. Mint. I'm not sure what you mean by, the grading for both seems to be AG-3. By American grading standards, AG means "About Good" which is very, very low on the 70-point Sheldon Scale. These appear to be proof coins, but I don't know if the major grading services (NGC or PCGS) would slab them. I'm pretty certain that ICG would.

Chris

 

My bad...I didn't know these were from a private mint (I also have a couple "Walking Liberty" silver dollar coins that are slightly bigger and are definitely (I think!) from the U.S. Mint...as they have United States of America over the top [back side of coin] w/the U.S. Great Seal...and I just made the mistake of assuming that the prospector coins were dollar coins also...again, my mistake!

 

The private mint that made them is Engelhard, based in southern Mass. They are better known for their one, ten, and 100 ounce silver and gold bars.

ACE Mike

 

No numismatic value as far as I know, just bullion value, as they were intended to be.

ACE Mike

 

No need to apologize. It's no big deal.

The "Walking Liberty" dollar is the Silver American Eagle, a bullion coin. The Mint has been producing these since 1986, and it is struck in one ounce, .999 Fine silver.

Chris

 

...so if i sold these two silver coins, do you have any idea how much i should get from a dealer?

 

I'm sure i could just google the price of silver

 

I think silver is in the upper $17's today. You would probably get in the $30 area for the pair.

ACE Mike

 

Silver closed at $18.09 today, and a dealer would likely give you about 20% back of Bid.

Chris

 

Engelhard is a reputable bullion company. If you choose to sell to a dealer, you will only get around $13 to $14 bucks! Bad idea, keep it, it's a nice piece. I have a couple of the older ones and I hope I never have to sell to a dealer!!