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Message:: [QUOTE="Valentinian, post: 2701089, member: 44316"]To me, the condition (but not "grade," which is a technical term with a definition I do not have the right to dispute ) of a coin takes into account detractions regardless of source. US collectors seem to think "bagmarks" are not circulation, but the same detraction from a  scratch or rub suffered in "circulation" is somehow worse. All right, US-coin collectors define the US-coin-collecting game and that is their rules. But, I collect ancient coins and US-coin rules do not have to apply. A coin could be fresh from the ancient mint, but if it is weakly struck or off-center enough to clip the legend, then the condition plummets in my opinion, although the wear might be zero and the "grade" high. That is why NGC also has "strike" and "surface" factors (which they should have separately for the two sides--neither is necessarily the same on the two sides). In "Selections from the Numismatist: Ancient and Medieval Coins", published in 1960 (long ago) an article entitled "Some Notes on Grading Ancient Coins" by Mead Kibbey has, under EF "The grade indicates a full round flan, little or no wear, and no objectionable corrosion. All details of the design clear except perhaps a little wear on the highest parts or a single defect like a small nick." For "VF" it has "This grade permits some corrosive pitting, wear on the higher parts of the coin, but still calls for good centering of the die and legible inscriptions." The point is, the modern use of "grade" refers to wear from "circulation" alone (according to US-coin standards), forcing us to use "condition" or some synonym for it to (attempt to) describe desirability, if we use any term at all (I recommend not using any term, just a good photo.) But, like the article included in the 1960 book, it is important to take into account things that have nothing to do with wear like centering and corrosion (not to mention strike, style, surface, including patina, etc.). The idea that a detraction is somehow less important because it was not due to circulation is, in my opinion, not appropriate for ancient coins. One way to think of the quality of a coin is to imagine a discussion of the type in a book. Would the coin make a good illustration?  Is the legend visible?  If you want to illustrate a "Dacian Captive" type under Trajan in the book and the coin is off-center so much that the "DACCAP" in exergue is off the flan, it may "grade" EF or UNC or Mint State, but it is not a good example of the type.[/QUOTE]

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