Is this Morgan genuine?

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by Maxfli, Jun 24, 2026 at 8:12 AM.

  1. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    My granddaughter works at a Sam’s Club. An older man who works there gifted her the Morgan dollar pictured bellowed. I see that an 1881cc is fairly scarce, so my first thought was, “Is it real?” At a glance, it looks OK to me, but I’m not a Morgan guy and don't know the tells, so I thought I should let some of the experts on this site have a look at it. What say you?

    (Sidenote: It didn’t sound like anything creepy. She described him as a grandfatherly figure and said he gave similar coins to a couple of other young workers.)

    1881cc-O.jpg

    1881cc-R.jpg
     
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  3. ldhair

    ldhair Clean Supporter

    It looks fake to me. If not, it's been worked on.
     
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  4. numist

    numist Member

    Upon first glance it screams 'fake' to me. There are several things about the obverse that give me pause. The CC on the rev looks off and if that's a dollar coin snap together holder the coin should fit exactly.. looks smaller but that could be the holder. I'd say have a coin shop take a look before doing anything else.
     
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  5. bud250r

    bud250r Active Member

    It does have that Chinese look to it.
     
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  6. No_Ragrets

    No_Ragrets Self-proclaimed Semi-Amateur Numismatist Supporter

    It looks fake to me. Pop it out of the capsule and weigh it, check it with a magnet, or match up a VAM to it would be the easiest ways to confirm, but it doesn't look promising. Still though, it was a nice gesture by gifting it!
     
    dwhiz likes this.
  7. SensibleSal66

    SensibleSal66 U.S Casual Collector / Error Collector

    Looks totally fake. Too bad. :( The guy probably meant well. I would let him know. ;)
     
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  8. Randy Abercrombie

    Randy Abercrombie Supporter! Supporter

    Yeah... I am afraid that I too am on board with the Beijing mint on this one.
     
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  9. Mr. Numismatist

    Mr. Numismatist Strawberry Token Enthusiast

    Definitely fake.
     
    dwhiz likes this.
  10. longnine009

    longnine009 Darwin has to eat too. Supporter

    Where are the scuffys? CC Morgan's were shipped by wagons. They are notorious for baggy surfaces.

    If you hold it up to your ear like a sea shell you may hear Mao calling you an "Imperialist running dog." :troll:
     
    Last edited: Jun 24, 2026 at 10:04 AM
  11. geekpryde

    geekpryde Husband and Father Moderator

    The obverse is ridiculous!
     
  12. mrweaseluv

    mrweaseluv Supporter! Supporter

    100% chinese copy.. sowwy...
     
  13. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    I suspect that's a silver eagle holder. Size is probably the easiest thing for a counterfeiter to get right.
     
    numist likes this.
  14. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    I'm in North Carolina and my granddaughter is in Ohio, but I'll pass along those suggestions.
     
  15. Cazador

    Cazador Supporter! Supporter

    Here is a real one from my 7070 cracked out of a GSA holder that was damaged upload_2026-6-24_15-35-48.jpeg upload_2026-6-24_15-35-48.jpeg
     
    Last edited: Jun 24, 2026 at 4:00 PM
  16. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    Thanks to all of you who took the time to study the coin and render a verdict.

    As I mentioned in the OP, I'm not a Morgan guy so I'm ill-equipped to make the call myself. But I'm wondering if some of you would mind citing a few of the specific "tells" that lead you to believe it's a counterfeit ... because I'm pretty sure the first words out of my granddaughter's mouth will be, "How do you know?" :D
     
  17. atcarroll

    atcarroll Supporter! Supporter

    It's a cartoonish fake
     
  18. Cazador

    Cazador Supporter! Supporter

    There are so many fakes out there! Here are a few that I keep for examples. upload_2026-6-24_15-49-52.jpeg
     

    Attached Files:

  19. longnine009

    longnine009 Darwin has to eat too. Supporter

    Umm, squeaky clean surfaces on a CC Morgan? It's "out of character" and IMO a red flag.

    Contemporary forgers during the Civil War had a similar problem while forging CSA notes---they looked too good to be real.
     
  20. mrweaseluv

    mrweaseluv Supporter! Supporter

    2 things right off the bat.. the wheat stalks in the crown/hair are wrong, the hair at the bottom is cartoonish and flat.. not right. Toss in the beak of the eagle on the reverse is also "not right" far to "rounded" and there is no gap between the left wing and neck of the eagle. All minor differences from the real coin but they add up quickly to "fake".
     
  21. ldhair

    ldhair Clean Supporter

    The first thing that struck me is the details in her curls. They look too strong. It's an odd look.
    Also, the coin looks too clean of hits.
     
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