Big scratches on a pattern coin, but it's still PR64. Why?

Spotted this J-236 pattern half in a Heritage auction. It's a1859 Paquet design with Liberty seated with her hand on fasces on obverse and spread eagle reverse. This version was struck in copper, toned brown but with a beautiful blue overlay. Graded PR64BN by PCGS.

The reverse appears to have significant scratches through the upper part of the ribbon and eagle's right wing and further down the ribbon and shield. See the pics. The zoomed-in view shows them clearly.

I'm pretty sure they are grooves (scratches), not ridges, which means they were created on the coin post-striking as opposed to being struck with a scratched die. I suppose the planchet could have been altered pre-striking, somewhat similar to adjustment marks on early gold coins. Seems unlikely with a copper planchet.

Coin is being sold without cataloger comments. I've examined several J-236 coins sold in the past by Heritage, and none had anything like this. Weakness in striking the upper part of the ribbon is common.

So, why was the coin straight-graded? Do patterns get a pass on scratches?

Cal

 

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In my experience, patterns are given more leniency.

 

Good question

 

If the TPG deems the "damage" occurred during the striking process the it would straight grade.
That covers such things as die scratches, die cracks, strike through's, laminations, etc.

 

Yeah, that's pretty much true. However, I've seen coins with planchet laminations in details holders or body bags (PCGS code 83); also seen them with 65 grades too (another pattern, J-1749 !).

For this coin though, the marks appear to be grooves (scratches) which would probably been acquired after striking. If the marks were due to die scratches or cracks, they should be ridges on the coins.

Cal

 

These photos appear to be from the auction. Are we sure the scratches aren't on the slab and not the coin? I can't tell from these photos and the original on Heritage.

 

Actually, the close-up is from PCGS. Pretty sure they take the photos before the coin is slabbed.

Cal

 

Old toned over scratches get a pass often. I think 64 is a bit generous. I see it more in a straight grade 62/3 holder because of that. Otherwise the coin is a 65. So I think they bumped it a bit

 

Special dispensation........go and sin no more, my son.........

 

The gouges may have been in the planchet before it was struck. In areas of highest relief, they remain strong, while in the fields, they are struck out a bit. Staple scratches or knife cuts would look different from those.

 

I have a pattern that was struck on a planchet bisected by a straight line scratched through it (which straight graded). The effect is quite interesting but it does not look like this.

A scratch on a planchet will still get pushed into the dies in those areas and won't appear as a gouge descending into the devices on the coin. Rather, the scratch will remain narrow in the fields (in some places barely seen) but will widen proportionally with the depth of the devices as the metal flows into the die, and will ride along top of the devices.

 

Isn't that more or less what we're seeing at the edge of the eagle's wing? The "scratch" may have been a rather deep hack before being struck. The deeper the die, the more original planchet surface is preserved.

 

Well, it's possible that we are. From the pictures it looks to me like it goes down through the devices not along top of them. But it's hard to tell what this looks like in three dimensions without multiple photos from slightly different angles.

 

Having purchased many graded pattern coins over the years, I would agree that the TPG companies are a little bit more forgiving when it comes to the grade of a rare coin. As an R-4 it gets a little bit of a pass. Still, a very neat coin that few collections have.

 

Agree. Fewer than 50 sold at auction in last 30 years. A number of the sales were resales of same coin. This one just sold for $2,400.

Cal