Just looking through some coins and found this searched the internet for something like it and couldn't find anything on it. Please help
Coper210, Welcome to the Forum! Kasia is correct, The initial was stamped into the face by someone outside of the mint , so it is post mint damage ( PMD). A single letter reduces the numismatic value of the coin, unless it was a longer name, company , etc., which some people collect since there is a history to it. Jim
If it really had a genuine "D" mintmark, it would be extremely rare and virtually priceless, despite the PMD, since the Denver Mint didn't open until 1906, and the only Morgan Dollars minted there were the 1921 revival. The "D" on the back isn't a mint mark, it's just more PMD. ("D" was also the mintmark at Dahlonega, but only gold coins were made there, and it closed in 1861.) The Philadelphia mintage of 1879 (14,807,100) was the largest up to that time, and one of the largest of the 19th Century. In the condition shown it wouldn't be worth much more than its melt value without the PMD, and with that damage IMHO you would be lucky to get 95% of the value of its actual silver weight of .7734 oz. (~$21.75 at 8 a.m. PDT on 6/4/12)
Jim is correct. Unless you could prove the nature of that countermark, that is was done for a purpose and not just someone wishing to punch letters in a coin, its a damaged coin that will be worth melt value.
