While reviewing some coins for errors, I found a 1972-S red-brown coin with slight double-die errors on the obverse in the "LIBERTY" and the "s" mint mark, as well as a missing "e" in the e.pluribus.unum on the reverse. Any idea if this coin is valuable or not. See attached.
IMO the S looks like it could be a repunched mint mark. Wait for the experts to give their opinions. The missing E is probably due to a grease filled die. You need to post a clear photo of the obverse with a closeup of the word LIBERTY to help determine if it's a Doubled Die or not. Check this site: http://varietyvista.com/02b LC RPMs Vol 2/RPMs 1972S.htm You can check for a Doubled Die on this site: http://doubleddie.com/823839.html
Thanks Tom, when you say expert are you referring to NGC? Sorry for the poor quality of the photos; I'm still perfecting my coin photo taking skills but I hope these photos can help.
It appears to me to be Die deterioration damage from overuse. The die image is slowly squeezed to the perimeters of the coin over thousands of strikes ( notice how close the letters are to the edge) The numbers do also, and starts to appear as doubled, but it is just DDM. The mintmark seems to have chips reflecting damage to the mint mark punch being worn or broken in the thinner areas. IMO, Jim
Thanks Jim, I am a novice searching for error coin so any advice you can provide will be greatly appreciated. My next step would be to consult an expert? If so, what expert(s) would you recommend to evaluate this coin. As I stated in a prior post, I have been buying coins most of my life for my son whom unexpectedly passed away a couple years ago. So, now that I am retired, I'm putting the collected coins together to see just what I have and possibly find something that is valuable. Anyone that can provide insight into the coin evaluation process and offer coins at auction would also be helpful. Sincerely PattiWagon!
While all top tier grading firms have experts I was referring to members on Coin Talk. to name a few: @desertgem; @Fred Weinberg; @mikediamond; @paddyman98; a few more that I can't remember right now. As I stated in my first post the mint mark looked promising based on the photo. The middle curve of the S and the bottom knob, IMO, looks like it has some kind of doubling but I'm not an expert so it could be a form of Die Deterioration Doubling or Mechanical Doubling. That's why I said wait for the experts who know a lot about errors. edit Looking at the photo of LIBERTY I have to agree with @desertgem that it looks like DDD.
Thanks Tom, I also have a 1972-D that is missing the initials on the reverse and the e in e.pluribus is much lighter than the rest of the phrase and the mint mark might be doubling. What do you think?
Don't know how common this is but the consensus seems to be a grease filled die. IMO it's also possible that it's the result of being over polished. Here's an old link: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/1972-d-cent-with-no-fg-initials-on-reverse.274765/ It also seems to have been common on other cents: https://www.etsy.com/listing/689315...z_9WWN1oKsH99dLC4ukyA1hYMwBJeWDxoC2tIQAvD_BwE
