I really wanted to buy this 1835 quarter that was listed on E-Bay. Its price was well below the listed numismatic value. At the last minute (as those sites often do), the price got bumped a few times as more people bid. Before I raised my bid, I stopped and really looked carefully at the coin to make sure it was worth it. That is when I began to notice some things that didn't settle well for me. I went onto Google, USA Coin book and other such resources to look at genuine coins to see if this coin listed on Ebay was legit. There were at least a few things that I didn't like. One example, the 3 in 1835 was much higher than all the other numbers. All of the 'genuine' examples I saw, the 3 was in line with the rest of the date. Additionally, on the reverse, where it says '25 C', the 2 and 5 just didn't look quite right. So, in the end, I passed up on the coin. But I want to learn so that I don't make the same mistake again in the future. What are your opinions? Is it legit? Is it just a variety I didn't find in basic reference online information? Or was I right in getting that "something isn't right" feeling? 1835 Capped Bust 25c Obverse by BostonCoins posted Feb 18, 2021 at 2:17 PM 1835 Capped Bust 25c Reverse by BostonCoins posted Feb 18, 2021 at 2:17 PM
I'm not even a bust quarter novice...but the date and "25¢" look screwy to me. Here's a graded one for comparison... https://www.reedededge.com/product/1835-capped-bust-quarter-pcgs-ms-62/
This looks like the B-2 die marriage, R-2, the second most common of the die marriages of 1835. All the diagnostics you mentioned as being suspicious are actually characteristic of this set of dies. I see nothing about the coin that makes me suspect it might be counterfeit. The coin is a nice VF-30 or 35 in my opinion and if you are after one in mid-grade you could do worse. For reference, Steve Tompkins' book on early US quarters is my go-to reference for die marriages. BTW, what was the winning bid? And did the seller put a grade on it?
Thank you @Publius2. I tried looking for die types on the internet but didn't have much luck. I am very much into Large Cents, so I'm very familiar with die varieties (Sheldon and such), but I just couldn't find anything that gave me that information so I passed. Really wish I hadn't now. The final sale price was about $107. I too thought it looked F to VF which put it in the $140 - $160 range. Oh well. Live and learn. Thank you for the input!
It's a G reverse 1835. I consider that to be a major variety. A very nice coin. Nothing wrong with it, and it went for a good price. Comparing a specific photo for coins of this period like you did does not really work for identifying counterfeits like it does with moderns. The dies were made by hand so you will see a lot of variance between coins and they are all just fine, especially true for bust halves. If you want to get into varieties, that's a different type of collecting altogether. The subtle differences you noticed are referred to as die markers and are used for identifying the variety. As someone pointed out above, this is a B-2. Here is an example from my own collection:
Not long ago I was asking about another bust coin, a half, that had a mis aligned die. I too thought it was fishy at first. But evidently a characteristic of that year. I like the variety variance. I love these old coins.
@ksparrow , your coin is the B-1 die marriage, R-1: Same Obverse 1 as the OP's coin but yours has the Reverse H. As you noted "25 C." is different but also, on Reverse H the eagle has no tongue.
As long as we're posting other 1835's, die marriage on this one? Sorry for some really old bad pics. I note that the C on the reverse is in an odd place relative to the others on here and no dot after the C, eagle seems to be no tongue.
@KBBPLL, your coin is the B-7 die marriage, R-2. Obverse 5 with a large 1 in the date. Reverse L, eagle has no tongue and the only reverse die where there is no period after C2. The obverse is the first use of this die which was used later on B-8. Reverse L on your coin is a late die state, determined by the filled N and M.
Thanks @Publius2 . I never looked closely at it before. From other examples the "broken U" is also a marker; originally I thought that was damage. It's always fun to learn something new about a coin. I've had it since getting it from my grandfather in 1972. Sadly I think it's one of the coins I cleaned when I was a stupid kid.
