I bought a 1921D Morgan dollar VAM 1J that has damage on the back and the back looks like it may have been cleaned besides also reeking of nicotine. I saw the gash in the picture and was hoping that it would not be as bad as it looks in the picture but I was wrong. The break appears to be a late-die state but the gash is in a bad location being on the die break above the A. I paid $33.00 for the coin but I would lose about $5.00 total in shipping and handling if I send the coin back. Since the coin in the late die state is tough to find (having spent a ton of hours trying to find the coin) should I keep the coin or because the gash is in a bad place (and the coin reeks of nicotine) would it be better to return the coin and lose some money?
I'm guessing the images you posted are the seller's? The obverse looks like he either spent some time on photo-shop or what CBD said.
I do not like to judge by photographs but the soft devices, the cuts (scratches) and reverse toning appear to be an attempt to disguise a counterfeit. Have you tried the magnet test or weighed it?
The coin dealer who looked at the coin did not think it is a counterfeit. I tried using a magnet on the coin anyway but the magnet did not stick to the coin. The seller claimed the coin has been in a safe deposit box all of these years which may explain why it has cuts and scrapes on it. The pictures themselves are from the seller which are not very good but I don't have a camera to take pictures.
Hint: If you can attribute and match die markers for a specific vam. Its gonna be authentic 99.9% of the time as long as there isnt a seam on the edge. Checking the weight is usually a good indicator too. 26.7 g
