I've decided to stick this Isabella in a bezel and wear it around my neck and shoot For an AU 50 something slabbed specimen. I just was browsing eBay and saw a slabbed "AU 50+." I've never seen that designation before.
I think the more you start collecting the more that you will see; solid AU58 is generally going to look nicer that an average MS60. IMHO..
I'll echo that. I've seen '60 '61 grades that look horrible and '58 grades that are rather pleasing to the eye.
You two wouldn't be saying that because the MS is under the ANACS label would you?(sarcastic remark not to be taken seriously)
Im going to say with the photos you've provide that its a counterfeit. I have one that looks exactly like that and has the same characteristics as yours, AND is silver, but it is a fake.
I just sold a NGC AU58 at a major show in Chicago and I found that many of the dealers were not interested in the coin at all. The bulk of them had these coins in their inventory and according to the dealers, they have not had any serious lookers in some time. They seem to be falling out of favor right now. After 4 hours of showing the coin around, I finally sold it to a commorative dealer. He had a couple of 58's already but they were self graded and mine was slabbed. Just more of a general heads-up here, rather than a conclusion based on my personal experience from the show.
I think these coins and most other classic commemoratives can be had for a bargain right now. If you want to build a nice set, now is the time to do it! I also have a suspicion that has been echoed by some other dealers that there are bigger wholesalers hoarding classics right now based on this very assumption. I think the classic market will rebound and there will be significant price jumps on lower mintage coins like the Isabella and Lafayette. Just my opinion though.