Seems to still have a bit of luster - appears circulated. Based on comparisons with graded coins I have, I'm thinking AU something, maybe 50, possibly 55. Has it been cleaned? and if so, harshly or not? Opinions appreciated. Thanks
I see lots of horizontal striations - same orientation on both the obverse and reverse, including the devices. Has it been whizzed? I'm new to this though, so I hope for your sake I'm wrong!
I'd say it's an AU, but I can definitely see some striations. I'd have to say it was cleaned with something abbrasive at some point. It's not chrome which is good, but I can see some darker "original" areas around the outline of Liberty's head and around the upper outline of the eagle where the cloth or whatever couldn't get to. Either way though, it's not a BAD looking CC, at least in the pics.
Yes, the coin has been cleaned. There are many small scratches across the surface which is an indication of cleaning. That makes the coin ungradable. If you want to know a details grade...I'd say XF/AU range.
All helpful comments. I think the angle that the photo was taken overemphasizes the direction of the scratches - they don't appear to be in a uniform direction when viewed live, but there are certainly many of them. I have at least two graded coins that have about as much scratching. Nevertheless, I'm thinking AU-details myself.
I'll call it AU details, cleaned. From the photos it looks like it retained some good luster despite the cleaning, so I would not call it a harsh cleaning. Overall not a bad example to put into a DANSCO as a filler until you can find one that hasn't been cleaned or that you like better.
yes, that is true - feather's only faintly remaining. Actually, this made me think that perhaps it wasn't cleaned, as it seems like a pretty sure sign of circulation (I like lightly circulated coins). But then I suppose one may not have much to do with the other. I do have other coins that appear to be lightly circulate (graded either AU50 or XF40 or so) that have similar scratching.
I'd personally put it in an envelope and let it retone a little , still it will always be an AU details coin , but a little toning would make it look a little nicer . IMHO
I guess you missed the memo..... Orig pics were very unflattering, the pic in the slab probably shows how the coin really appears.
I did miss that it graded, Very scratched coin-- lots of hairlines. It was graded because it is a CC.
Me thinks that guessing grades from pictures is a pretty tough business. I recently sent in 8 raw CC Morgans - I figured that about 1/2 of the total might grade - but every one of them got a full grade - ranging from xf40 to ms63. The data would suggest that CC's are cut some slack.
I don't think the coin got a buy because it was a CC. I think the lighting in the orig pics makes the scratches look WAY worse than they really are. The scratches are also probably a result of circulation rub, rather than a harsh cleaning. From the pic of the coin in the slab, you can barely see the scratches, and is most likley a better representation of the coin in hand. The coin is certainly not a stunner, but probably deserves the low AU grade. Maybe the OP can give his input on how the coin looks in hand
You are probably right--looks better in the slab than in the original pictures. It is a marginal AU coin, and NGC probably got it right.
It has a lot more luster than shows in either picture - something in between the first photos and the picture in the slab - where to me it looks duller than it actually is. I find silver coins very difficult to photograph accurately. I guess I need a better way to do it - someday.