Hi everyone, I just started collecting gold coins and I had some questions regarding my coin conditions. I bought some random year 1 oz Gold America Eagle Brilliant Uncirculated coins from a reputable coin dealer. I was told that they will come in individual plastic flips if ordered less than 20. Instead, 10 coins were shipped in a loosely packed coin roll container. So, I now own ten 1986 1 oz Gold America Eagle BU coins with marks on the face. I'm not sure if these marks were created during shipping or not but should I be worried as a collector? Thanks for your input.
If I had received these, I would have insisted on a full refund OR replacement with items as advertised. This may anger these folks, so you might get exchanges that are not even as nice as the ones you received. With that in mind, I might ask them to send the ten coin capsules that had been advertised in their sale page. BTW Mike Mezak often boasts on his TV coin shows about how many tens of thousands of bullion coins his people go thru in order to come up with certifiable, collector quality, MS69 or MS70 quality coins. If you are looking for modern, collector quality, coins, then buy them that have already been sorted out for you...but NOT from Mezak.
Agree with these posts. While the mint does strike some beautiful designs on these pieces they are regarded and valued as bullion. Now I like to hold and enjoy my coins as much as the next person and I would be disappointed in the vendor for packaging them in such a way that they sustained damage. However the marks will not detract from it's value simply because it is bullion.
I agree with others. There is nothing wrong with the urge to "collect" bullion coins, but I would suggest going to a coin show and picking out the pieces in person if you wish to do that. Most buyers of these worry about gold content, not small marks. At the end of the day, these coins are destined for the melting pot, right? They are destined to be needed to make a necklace, ring, industrial application, etc. That is why "bullion" is bullion.
Btw OP, I kept looking for damage on Liberty's face. I think you are talking about the damage on her waist and leg. If "face" you meant the side of the coin, we call that the obverse. Clarity of terms helps. The other side we call the reverse. If you are interested, the obverse of the coin is defined by the side that the die does not move, and the reverse is the side struck by the moving die. MOST of the time the portrait is on the obverse, but not always. I have many ancient coins where the portrait is on the reverse die, so saying "face" does not help us know which side you are talking about, (especially on coins with portraits on both sides, or no portrait on either side).
You're thinking Hammer die and Anvil Die not obv/rev. The obv can be either hammer or anvil, same with the rev (though typically not during the same years production.)
Ancient collectors label all anvil dies as the obverse to the coin, regardless of if it the portrait or not. Look at Corinthian staters, the pegasus is the obverse even though the reverse has a portrait of Athena.
