Hey everyone, I am new to this coin forum and would first off like to introduce myself. I have been collecting coins as a hobby for years now and love building on my collection. I have done a lot of looking on this forum but not a lot of conversing so I am looking forward to getting to know the community. Now onto the point of my rambling. My post is in reference to a recent buy that I stumbled upon. Its an 1889-CC morgan dollar. It is apparent from the pictures that this coin has had some sort of cleaning but my main concern is the pitting on the chest and right wing that was noted. Ive never seen coins that were pitted besides VAMs. I have went ahead and attached a picture of the coin. Is it possible that its not original? I will be weighing it when i receive it just to ensure it is. What do you all think about it? I appreciate anyones provided input.
Without commenting on the coin pictured, pitting, in general, originates from two sources: 1) On forged coins, pitting is an indicator of counterfeits produced through casting. 2) Environmental damage. Residue on a coin could etch the area covered by the residue. This is why TPGs don't grade coins with active PVC residue. I would say it's probably counterfeit, just because it has the look of such. Beyond that, the VAM pitting would be from the dies, so they'd be consistently placed. Also, it would be a higher surface on the coin (recessed on the die).
Tough call on this one... the surfaces are bad to be sure... if its real it's VAM5 - VAM7 with the far date.
Thanks to everyone for the replies. Im hoping for the best and remaining optimistic. I will let everyone know the verdict when i receive the coin this weekend.
Yeah... I'm on the fence... I'd like to get a weight... I didn't see anything that definitively pegged it down as a known die pair... That doesn't rule it out... It looks like one of the later ones... Just can't see any die markers in the pics... They may be there.
We get the same situation that has happened frequently around here. Somebody comes up with a very valuable key date, and it is highly collectible. They wonder why the coin doesn't look right. I agree that this coin does not look right---stars are wrong, CC mintmark is not of any variety I have seen, and the eagle's face is out of proportion. I'd say the reason the coin looks the way it does is that it is a fake, most likely a Carson City by way of Shanghai. Dates such as 89cc should be purchased from a reliable dealer, and should be authenticated by a TPB. Assume that any "bargain" 89CC isn't a bargain, and one doesn't get something for nothing.
Now im excited but more anxious to get this puppy weighed. The seller is an honest individual and i am able to return it for a refund it its not to my liking which is the least of my worries in this case. I have a scale that goes to the nearest gram but just picked up on that does to the thousandth for a couple of bucks on amazon. I will let everyone know the verdict! Thanks again to everyones input on the matter.
