1853-O half on ebay: Am I missing something here?

Be sure and read the description:

http://cgi.ebay.com/1853-O-50c-PCGS...VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247


I'm sure people smiled but not for the reason he thinks.

 

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Folks pay big bucks for PCGS PO01 holders.
It's a tough grade and there are collectors.
The seller knows exactly what's going on.

 

Ok. Well, I guess it would help if I knew what a PCGS PO01 holder is?

 

See Here: http://pcgs.com/grades.chtml

 

PCGS PO1 grades have become a market.

It's not without controversy, as some believe a person could simply "artificially" wear down a coin to get the PO1 grade (and thus the PO1 premium). Some others think you can tell if a coin is naturally worn or not. Personally, I am not educated enough on the subject to know.

I do know some collectors are crazy about PO1s.

 

This is a really crazy hobby.
Some collect the best and others collect the worst.

 

IMO the coin is described correctly, but the seller is pricing it as a "No Motto" variety.
Could be trying to see who's paying attention.

 

It is "No Motto"

 

Wow! Thanks for the link and the info. I love this forum. Seems like you can learn something new every day.

I can't believe people would pay big money for these and I also would think it would be easy to wear one down and create one. To each his own I guess.

 

True.
But it's "No Motto/Arrows".
I was referring to "No Motto/No Arrows".

 

Just curious, how can a philly strike have an "O" mint mark ? I thought "O" was for New Orleans.

 

Pool? Is that it? Or is it #2?

 

It is a New Orleans coin.

Look at the O in the middle (bottom) reverse, in the middle of the rays.

 

Who ever said it was a Philly strike?

Oh I see, in the stupid description box in the auction. I never even look at that box when I look at an eBay auction. At least some of the information the seller puts there is usually wrong 90% of the time. So it is a waste of time. I wish eBay would get rid of it.

 

I agree it could be worn on purpose, but I don't know how easily.

 

I have wondered the same thing. One idea I had was placing a coin in a rock tumbler (used to polish stones) but I would imagine that the coin would have a very unnatural appearance with uniform color.