Okay, here is the lowest Prooflike Morgan I own. It has fantastic cameo, and great mirrors. Reflectivity is off the charts—verging on DMPL. It has lots of die polish marks that are kind of cool. So, what cost this coin 1-2 grades, given its eye appeal? Opinions, please. I know what I think.
Those dueling scars on the cheek might win points at Heidelberg, but not at NGC. Also the haze in front of the eyes and to the right of the date don't help. Otherwise, agree, nice coin.
I think the rim from 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock on the obverse kills the technical grade but doesn't really hurt the eye appeal. I love coins like this...beautiful at a discount.
The rim doesn’t bother me. Honestly nothing about this coin bothers me. The only thing I have to compare is a coin that I had that graded 61. The luster and strike were great. The cheek was clean. The only downfall it had was several tiny tick marks. Very very small blemishes but so many and enough that it supposedly was enough to limit the coin to 61. This coin being a definite PL exaggerated those marks and maybe lead to the low MS grade. Still a very eye appealing PL to me. https://www.cointalk.com/threads/gtg-1904-o.328202/
Seems pretty obvious to me, all the chatter and the mottled surfaces of the fields. In my eyes, it drops the eye appeal to almost nothing. edit - should have added this - that may well be light wear on the eagle's right wing. Meaning it's an AU coin that didn't get the grade dropped, rather its grade got bumped up.
There's the rim bump, clatter and marks in the fields. It looks like a small hit on her lips and that cheek mark is deep enough that it leaves the edges raised from metal that's been pushed. Then there's very light rim bruises and heavier molting than on the obverse.
Doug’s usual nonsense of every coin that has a few marks on it is AU, and TPGs conspire to overgrade coins. Yawn! You think he would have learned a new song, after a decade of the same old tune. If that coin has no eye appeal, then he’s a monkey’s uncle.
Perhaps I was not clear with my OP. I know it is a coin with some minor problems. In hand, and in the pictures I took, I think it still has plenty of eye appeal. Most responses have been constructive and illustrative, and I agree that there are reasons it was not graded higher. I do own coins with fewer issues in 63 and 64 holders, so I was curious as to what the TPG thought held the coin back from a choice MS status? My opinion is the rim roughness at 11:30 to 2 o clock. The cheek is fairly typical Morgan contact marks, and die polish lines, from a PL coin. More opinions are welcome. However, I can’t see how a serious collector would see this as an AU inflated grade coin. Best case scenario? Probably 63PL.
There is no wear on that coin. But if you want me to stir the pot...I'm gonna say AU details. The photos make it look lifeless as if dipped to death.
Bad light. I can post a better exposure, as I took multiple pix. The luster looks better in this light. . We were having a thunderstorm when I took the original pics.
I know. lol. I am just doing it to bug Doug’s snap judgement. It is beautiful for a slight problem coin, and you caught the problem right away—the slightly rough rim.
You have historically given a lot of weight to minor rim damage, even though the TPGs almost never do. The cloudiness of the surfaces indicate an old dipping, and that is why it was netted downward