Just got this coin the other day, looking for your opinions about its authenticity and value. It's a 1851 Seated Liberty Dollar. It has really good detail. There's a hole in it at 2 o'clock. It weighs 26.8 grams and is 38mm in diameter. How much will the hole hurt the coins value? Is it worth getting graded? I've included some photos. Thanks for all your help. Joe
This coin can't really be graded with the hole there; at best it will receive a details grade (XF?) if you send it to NGC. It is very definitely worth getting authenticated. The 1851 is a key date, but the hole will significantly eat into the value, assuming that it's genuine. I suspect it is (1851 Original), but others may have differing opinions.
It's hard to tell from those pictures but I think it might be ok too. The surface appears to have been cleaned/altered as well. The hole will make the coin worth about 10%-15% of it's cataloged value without the hole IMO. So if it trends at $14,000 in XF (which is bid) I think it should be worth $1,400 to maybe even $2,000 or a little more to the right person. Being a rare coin it might bring more... but it's a craps shoot.
I think it is real by the location of the hole. Most people modern day would drill the hole at the top, to wear it like a medallion. People back then didn't want to drill through the words, United States of America, as that would divide the words. Consider, these people just got done fighting the Civil war. With the price the LostDutchman has assigned to the coin, I'd have it authenticated.
