I bought this most common year of the Trade Dollars about 4 months ago after seeing so many that were cleaned. The dealer also showed me several counterfeit versions (for learning purposes) and I guess I went in the other direction and decided to have a "dirty" and surely original coin in my collection. What do my fellow collectors think about having such grimy coin in your collection? Do you find it distracting or unpleasant? And, while I'm at it, would you grade this as EF? Obverse Detail Reverse Reverse Motto
I'd grade the coin VF35. There is too much wear around the head and the corronet on the obv to go higher IMO.
One of my local dealers refers to that as "good, original dirt". Nothing wrong with that all. I have lots of coins like that. clembo
No expert here, but I would probably say XF40 at best and GDJMSP may be correct. Of course you have the coin in hand and we only have pictures. I kind of like that dark look on that trade dollar.
I like them dirty. I just bought $40 face in junk silver. I enjoy going through them and seeing what I find. I was surprised to find a 42 Mercury that was very clean, looked like it might have been a proof. The oldest coin I got was a 1920 dime. I also got a standing liberty quarter without a date. Dirty means a story. Where has she travelled over these last 130 years? How did she end up in your hand and not destroyed or lost? Her next 130 years will be less interesting than her last 130.
I don't mind wear and I don't mind toning. But I don't usually buy dirty coins. This coin looks to be very close to the line between VF and XF. Too close for me to tell.
I was trying to show the motto more clearly for your grading opinion. Now, I stumbled into showing the eye detail. Thank you for pointing that out! Please tell me more what a counterfeit would reveal in the eye area!
A counterfeit eye would normally show no pupil. Here's a couple of sites to read about counterfeit Trade Dollars.... http://reviews.ebay.com/Fake-U-S-Trade-dollars_W0QQugidZ10000000000049445 http://www.coinworld.com/news/102102/news-3.asp http://home.comcast.net/~reidgold/draped_busts/chinese.html Those should help.
Right on. Nice coin. I've heard 'em call it "just good, honest wear - no problems". I kinda like the color of this one. Nice work, catbert !
In "cleaning' coins, I like to think of it as similar to cleaning your face. Dirt and grime need to be removed with mild cleaners, and reasonable care. However, scraping off the skin (toning) in the process is not desirable.
There isn't anything wrong with a "dirty" coin, except I noticed her breasts were nice and shiny. What ya been doing with/to your dirty coin? Ribbit :smile Ps: I wasn't starring at her breasts. I . . . ahhhh . . . the glare caught my attention . . . yeah . . . that's the ticket!
