It's a bit tough to see all of the detail, but it lookf at least XF from what I can see. In XF it is worth about $600-650, but AU seated dollars are almost worth double what an XF is worth. Some better, brighter images would be needed to make that determination.
I'd say a strong VF with a cleaning. I usually like to buy ones like this for around $250.00-$300.00.
At the risk of being known as the guy who thinks everything is bad; I think the piece is counterfeit.
This coin scares me a bit... The design detailing just isn't at par with an authentic Seated dollar, and everything just looks a bit "mushy". Not saying it's fake, because your pics aren't good enough to determine that - I'm just seeing red flags.
Since I'm a newbie here I decided to wait for some more opinions before weighing in with my observations. I agree with iGradeMS70 and TomB, this Seated Dollar just looks off to me. The 1871s that I have seen tend to be weak strikes but this appears to be the weakest I have seen especially on the obverse.
I hate to be one to jump on a bandwagon, but I agree with mushiness. There simply appears to be not enough crisp detail that the small amount of wear would account for. OP, how did you acquire the piece? When did you acquire it? We are not trying to be overly critical, its just these have been coming out of China quite a bit. It is very hard to make this judgment from pics, though. Bad pics can make any good coin look "off", so we are just exploring the options right now.
Is its weight correct? Diameter? Even weight and diameter will not prove its correct, but it will prove if its incorrect. The problem with silver is its so easy to mimic its SG with cheap metals. I am just saying I go to asian markets, and in many of them I can buy this coin in pot metal for a few cents every day of the week. This coin is not as highly counterfeited as US, French, and British trade dollars, or Chinese silver dollars, but they are available everywhere. If you are not an expert in this series, I would highly suggest going to a large show to show someone in person who is, or spending the little bit of money and send to any TPG service. Chris
Oddly enough, I currently have an 1871 Seated Liberty dollar for sale on my website. The coin is graded by PCGS as MS63. This post is not meant as SPAM, but rather is meant to show some points I am picking up on your piece. 1) Your piece has what appears to be surface graininess throughout, this can be very common on counterfeits and is not typically present on legitimate coins unless they are corroded or struck from rusted dies or rusted planchets. 2) The date on your piece is not using the style of numbers that I am familiar with for this issue. Look at the numbers closely and compare their thickness and overall dimensions to the numbers in the linked image. They do not match. 3) The overall profile of Ms. Liberty looks off, the style of the stars looks off, the dentils looks off and the eagle's claws seem odd. Obviously, I have not seen this in-hand, but the images are telling me the piece is no good. Below is a link to my 1871- http://wsm.ezsitedesigner.com/share/scrapbook/23/239107/TBJ1871P63.jpg
I do deal with one of the largest silver dollar dealers in the nation, he is an expert and I posted this more for what you would grade it as. I have tested the diameter and its dead on, I have weighed it and its 4 grams light and I have tested the metal content and its nickel based. I was out of town when my employee bought it, and he only paid silver value for it, so a 20.00 lesson indeed. YOU GUYS ARE GOOD! This site is invaluable! mlgdave
if you own a gold and silver buying store isnt the second thing you do test for the metal after putting a magnet to it? i would consider teaching your employee
Well sorry that you got taken for a bit, it would have been a good score. At least it wasn't a very expensive lesson. Keep us in mind when any other coins come in, we would love to see them.