Obviously it is but who does this to a coin? I did a little research and B.L Fowle was a prominent printer/publisher in the mid 1880's. Looking at the letters on the coin and the movement of the letters L & E when they were punched kind of gives some credence that this was most likely Fowle's coin. After all who puts someone else's name on a coin. Sadly, unless there is a robust market for these type of damaged coins its value is probably just scrap. FWIW I've had this coin almost 50 years and just thought I'd share it here. Joe
Some people are not put off by it at all (but will still want a discounted purchase price), much like the "chops" on Trade Dollars. It does give a story to the coin.
I don’t think it’s just scrap, I’ll be happy to give you 2x or 3x melt for it lol... Actually I would much prefer this type of damage to other issues such as holes, gouges, etc. At least the counter stamp has some historical significance.
My older copy of Rulau's Standard Catalog of US Tokens 1700-1900. Lists a B.L. Fowler counterstamp on a 1794 dollar!! It was from an 1859 auction. He lists it as a Maverick and offers no hard info on the Merchant, but speculates he could be a manufacturing supervisor for a company that supplied guns to the Connecticut state prisons in the mid 1830's. Very interesting that yours is also on a Draped Bust dollar. There are some CT members that are knowledgeable about counterstamps, so hopefully, one of them may see it. Too bad you listed PMD has the post title. You might get more info if you had included counterstamp and Fowler in the title.
At first glance I thought it was "Fowler" also but there is no "r" at the end. Very little comes up during google searches other than references to him being a printer in the mid to late 1880. Interesting stuff. Am I able to change the title or is it something the mods can do?
It's FOWLER. You can just make out the serifs in the top 2 curls. The R would have ended up the field which is a lot lower than the portrait, so that's why it's missing. Note that the weak areas of the B are also in the field. No idea if the mods can change the title
I have seen some collectors who hunt out and collect counter stamped coins. Your best bet would be to seek one of them out to see what its worth to them. Maybe a little, could be a lot. Who knows??
I know this thread is a bit old, but I just came across it after seeing your post in the new thread about damaged coins, jafo50. I believe Oldhoopster is right about it being "Fowler"and not "Fowle". I can also see shadow strikes of an "R." It was correctly noted that the position of the strike would make the "R" and "B" weak or unreadable. Apparently, the punch was held slightly off balance on the left side, so most of the "B" is visible, while the "R" on the right side isn't. In the latest updates by Brunk in 2013, the Fowler coin (1794 Bust) is still unattributed, but your 1799 isn't listed as an example. You said you've owned it for many years, so that would be the reason why it's not. As for value, don't think for a minute it's not worth anything. Counterstamps on Bust Dollars are very rare. Despite the damage, you still have a decent looking coin, and to counterstamp collectors coin condition is generally not a big distraction...within reason, of course. A dollar value would be difficult to attach to the coin, but I don't think a few hundred dollars is unreasonable. If it were being bid on on an eBay auction or other site, and the "big guys" were aware of it, it might get 2 or 3 times that money. Take care of the coin, it's a good one. Thanks for showing it to us. Bruce
@BRandM After Oldhoopster commented on Fowle vs Fowler I took a closer look at the coin and I could see what he was talking about. I wasn't aware that these type of counterstamps were tracked. Thanks a lot for the information. Joe
Counterstamp collectors aren't common, Joe, but there are some highly motivated people with an interest in them. Any other questions you might have just let me know. Bruce
It’s kind of funny reading the comments on this old thread regarding the coin’s value, like “scrap” that may be worth “a few hundred dollars”. Now even the most hideous dreck is going for $500 and up on EBay, like holed, mutilated etc. If I was in the market for a details grade Bust Dollar this one would be much preferable to any of those.
It's possible there might be a reference in that book about a B. L. Fowler counter-stamped coin although it wouldn't be the same coin. Those that were helping me validate this coin got detoured a little during the research over that. There were also no photos of the other B. L. Fowler counter-stamped coin. Gregory Brunk had all of my photos but unfortunately he passed away before completing the validation. It's possible that he entered it into his data base but that's history now. BTW: This is one of my favorite coins counter-stamp and all.
I have a "head scratcher" counterstamped coin as well, but it's nowhere near as old. I haven't found any decent leads on this one except for one listing in Ancestry.com. https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/margaret-bell-wilcot-24-t0rpp Z
