Hello all, I Inherited some coin from my Grandfather as I’m not a coin collector any and all info would be very helpful, rarity, value, even opinions on condition would be helpful! I have two Morgan Silver dollars from 1879 one is mint marked S the other doesn’t seem to have a mint mark. I also have two 1909 wheat penny one VBD one non, a very red wheat penny from 1910, an 1888 indian head one cent, and a 1871 2 cent Coin. In addition I also have a Silver 1948 penny in a blue leatherette holder. Ps. I’m new to message boards so if I make a mistake anywhere please tell me and I will correct it and please forgive the error. Thanks!!
I would say your 1909 V.D.B cent is the best coin here, but does not have a lot of value, maybe $15-20 whole sale. Your other coins are common and average condition, but still a nice inheritance! The 1943-D cent looks plated.
Cool thanks! I think the silver penny was part of some sort of novelty collection so you’re probably right about the plating.
Welcome to Coin Talk, Nicole. Allow me to apologize in advance for any curmudgeons who might stop in; we have a couple. Their hearts are right but their keyboards ain't so hot. Allow me to qualify what I'm about to post with the caveat that your images aren't flawless, and it's never smart to form firm opinions from one single set of a given coin. Coin photography can be deceptive even if that's not the photographer's intent, so there's a certain amount of "from these images I see...." in any evaluation. And it's preferable to image coins outside their containers, although in this case you're right in keeping them in the flips until you know more about them. I'll start with the 1910 and go in order. From these pics: 1910: I really like it. The codes on the top right of the 2x2 mean "Choice Uncirculated, Red-Brown" which is a general indicator of grade and color. Lincoln Cents start out bright copper colored, and numismatists refer to that as "Red" when describing color. That's a more original and therefore more desirable state, and Red Lincolns are more valuable than darker ones. As they age, they can darken to what's called "Brown," and Red-Brown (RB) is the state between them. I love what I see for color although there may be those who distrust its' originality. I'm thinking the Choice Uncirculated term might be appropriate here. Nice coin, and if it's truly "Choice Uncirculated" I'd consider going over $30 for it for my own collection. 1943: Typical Steel wartime Cent with what looks like corrosion on the obverse. These are common, even in very high grade, so although yours looks rather nice technically, if that's actual corrosion it's probably not worth saving although you don't want to throw it away. 1909's: Agreed with Dan that these are the "best" of the bunch from a preservation standpoint. ANA is American Numismatic Association, and the "ANA 65/65" means the writer felt the coin met ANA standards (they're the folks who publish the standards which collectors theoretically grade from) for MS65 on both obverse and reverse. Both 1909's are nice value-added Reds from the looks of things, and although not lottery wins they could be worth anything from $25+ on up depending on grade. Nice liquid coins, and I'd happily own them. The Morgans are common issues, the San Francisco coin being in somewhat better shape but neither offer a ton of value above "minimal" for common Morgans. Morgan Dollars are more plentiful than a beginning collector might think. 1888: A common Indian Head Cent, not worth a ton. Have a very_close_look at the bottom left of the second 8 in the date - there's a very popular variety with the date punched over an 1887, and on it you can see the remains of the bottom of the 7 at that spot on the 8. 2 Cent: This one could be worth a few bucks, depending on condition. It's the last year of large-scale production of that issue and they made fewer than a million, enough in the real world to give it value relative to scarcity. Generally, from what I can see the "grades" marked on these aren't too far off reality - the writer seems to know what he's doing - so if we assume the 2C is actually "Fine Plus" it's probably the most valuable coin of the bunch. There's a lot to stimulate an interest in numismatics here.
Awesome, thank you so much of all the info and for taking the time to help me, I really and genuinely appreciate it!
This is a labor of love or I wouldn't do it. So what is your bigger-picture intent for these? May I at least hope that you're contemplating a closer look into what makes people like me so enthusiastic about them?
OK, so we'll approach it from that standpoint and see what we can do to make the outcome the best it can be for both you and the buyer. As an aside, this Forum - like all - will have rules regarding what newer members like yourself can and cannot do regarding selling and where you can talk about it, and that's a separate thing you'll have to figure out. Your casual way of mentioning Ebay indicates you're no stranger. Selling coins, to do best, is a little more exacting than regular Ebay auctions. The quality of your imagery, and the honesty of your description, will lead to higher sales prices and happier buyers - and Ebay coin buyers will not hesitate to jack up a poor seller, we suffer a lot of frauds in the market and we're kind of testy about it - all around. We can likely improve greatly on the technical quality of your images with the equipment you have right now, and that will be preferable because first and foremost you need to get a good idea yourself of the true quality of each coin. Some of them - especially the Lincolns - would likely get snagged within an hour or two of posting them if you show clear images and a reasonable Buy It Now price. So. Regardless of what you're using to shoot these coins, here's what you do: Get the camera and coin as square to each other as possible. If you're using a camera, preferably a tripod pointing straight down at the coin; if a cellphone, maybe on a flat surface with the lens peeking over the side, again pointed straight down at the coin on a flat, monochrome surface, preferably pure white because white will give the camera the fewest problems coping. I usually use worn, bleached white t-shirts because they're so soft and easy on the coin; you could use printer paper for the purity of the white but be very careful in placing the coins. The slightest scrape could cause marks affecting the value. Be careful. The coin needs to be out of any container. Snap the picture remotely, however you can. If a camera, use a delayed shutter. If a phone, maybe say "Cheese" like I can with my G3, and it snaps the pic. Just so your finger is not there to vibrate the camera when the shutter snaps. You'll have to experiment just a little to find out how close you can get to the coin and still achieve a clear focus, and you want the image to be as big as possible while remaining sharp. There's some homework for you. If you share what you're using to shoot pics, I can offer more specific advice.
Welcome to the site!! Nice coins. I don't think anyone's mentioned it yet (and you may already know this), but please do NOT attempt to clean your coins in any way. It would hurt their value and it would be really sad to see that 2¢ get damaged.
