Is this Morgan cleaned and polished or dipped in a silver coating of some sort? I definitely see fine lines in the field. It looks PL or DMPL but the way the back toned makes me curious. The peach toning is almost complete except small patches of non toned area. Im sorry the pictures arent great. The coin is so reflective it does something to my phone camera that makes it hard to capture.
This is another lower light picture. https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ttbsvAXvwzDJgautkNHo7HdRHhZAZj4ImA
It is a proof like 1878-S, which really shows the hairlines from handling. It would have been a stunner if it hadn't been mishandled and used. Circulated P/Ls don't really have much value over other circulated Morgans. About $25 retail unless it is a scarce VAM. You can go to www.vamworld.com and identify the VAM variety.
You need to check the reflection on both Obverse and Reverse. AT minimum both sides need to see a reflection at "4-6" to be a Worth DMPL most true DMPLs and PL are hard to photograph unless there are stunning examples. PLs need to have both sides show mirroring @ 2"-4". Just one side does not constitute PL or DMPL .. unfortunately there are many Morgan Dollars that will have just one side to fit. Lay a ruler in the place of your rocket ship and show both sides. @TheFinn is correct 1878 S Morgans are common uf it is truly a DMPL which I doubt you may be able to get $40 - $50 at a show. If you know someone that collects Morgans maybe you can trade him for something you like .. Try your local Coin Club or Coin Shop
No. It hasn't been cleaned. Pretty nice coin, if not a very high grade. It's been banged around a bit. I'm not sure about the color but I kinda like it. The circular lines are from the die polishing that gave it it's mirror-like finish.
Get the coin, and a loupe, out into bright sunlight. There's nothing better for revealing hairlines which both your eye and especially the camera might miss under other conditions. It is not at all surprising to see San Francisco Morgans, especially from 1878-1879, displaying PL characteristics and an amazing amount of die polishing, and this could well be such a coin. However, the lines I see on the obverse are curved on the left side, and Mint-originated die polishing lines for these years will be straight, in a North-South orientation. Therefore, you have to see if those lines carry onto the devices, which would be a sure sign that the coin has been brushed since die polishing cannot reach those areas. It's quite possible they'll only be visible from one specific sight angle and almost impossible to capture with the camera.
I've had the VAM attributed by a few people collaborating as a VAM 49. R4. So kinda rare but nothing crazy.
The coin is peach in person I just can't picture it is beautiful ha it's it's almost gold but almost pink.
Really. What is your definition of cleaning? I call wiping with a cloth or tissue cleaning, which this coin has had done. I guess it doesn't fit that definition for many sellers on ebay from what I've seen.
I would agree about the polishing. The picture makes everything look way worse. I think it might be a combination of polish lines and cleaning.
Those lines stop at the devices very succinctly . They sure look like basining lines in the picture. It might have been dipped or lightly wiped. Sure hard to tell by a pic but his are well focused and I can really zoom-in and it stays very clear.
So I finally got this coin out and took a look at some things you all mentioned! @tpsadler the obverse of the coin does show solid reflection up to about 3 inches but the reverse is just shy of 2 at about 1.8~ inches so I don't think this would classify as PL unless they were gracious. Thank you for the info though I learned a lot! @David Setree Rare Coins @SuperDave I took this coin into better lighting (artificial and natural) and no matter my angle or devices I didn't see any of those hairlines anywhere besides the field. HOWEVER, the left side of the face seems like someone wiped the middle of the field once b/c I could see two patterns of lines: one vertical and one curved. Result: I believe its near PL with heavy die polishing lines and possible spot clean. Grade MS something unless they gave details for those cleaning lines. Thank you everyone for your input! You help make me smarter every time!
