Thoughts on grade, authenticity, etc. are welcome. I would say it's AU. I can't detect any hairlines.
I am not an expert, just own a couple, but the LIBERTY bothers me. Is that normal? That and overall mushiness bothers me sir.
Hate to say it, but looks iffy to me. Not an expert on the $10 golds, but the details have that mushy look that fakes do.
This design is nearly universally found mushy and that was one of the chief complaints by bank tellers and other businessman when the coin was issued.
Is it a function of the S mint Tom? I believe my two examples are P mints. Did SF mint them differently at times?
I think it's probably a good coin, though I do agree LIBERTY looks a little funky. Probably just the lighting used to photograph the coin, maybe a partial ring-LED light?? The legends on the reverse all look fully struck-up and the frosty surfaces without any dimples in the protected areas of the reverse legend convince me that the coin is authentic. I would call it an AU53. With the prices having dropped dramatically on Indian Eagles this past year, now is a great time to add them to your collection. You can get coins all the way up to certified MS62 for less than $750 right now, and coins as nice as AU58 for less than $650. To my way of thinking, there isn't a much better way to add gold to the hoard than these 100 year-old coins when they are selling at these prices.
Compare the very top tip of the stars on the obverse to the known AU50. They are in a pretty protected area. All the AU50 ones are crisp and sharp still, and all of these are mushy, and not very sharp. I still say fake.
I think it's the lighting on the stars as well. Notice the shadows are present on ALL of the edges of the stars, --because there isn't a single light source, but rather a whole bunch of individual LED light sources.
Compare the stems of the feathers.There is a lot more space in between the first 2 of the real one. Very good spacing between all the ones on the left. When you look at the one on the right, starts getting mushy above the LI
I don't know enough about these to make a judgement as to authenticity. I will say, however, that if it is real, the coin appears to have been polished - the fields in front of her face just don't feel right.
Many are made using the right gold. I still think there is a good chance it is a fake. What is the story? Where did you get it? Do you plan on grading it?
I think it'll grade AU55, but really it isn't worth doing that financially. The only reason would be to authenticate it, but between seeing it in-hand, the feel of it, and the weight of it, I believe it to be 100% genuine. I got it off eBay from a seller with a "no hassle returns" 14 day return policy and 100% feedback (I know, I know. That doesn't mean anything).
Better you than me. I make gambles with $5 gold and under, but I stay away from ungraded coins this expensive. I still wouldn't touch this coin with a 10 ft stick unless it was graded. Just looks off to me.