Did Santa bring me a Morgan Surprise DD??

Thanks Becky, sorry about the mix-up nesvt i am going pic crazy! nesvt has been such an unbelievable help. I hope I can always call on you guys for expertise.

O.K. I took pix 2 of left side 1 of top(had to lower the spotlight to get whatever that is over the wreath), 1 of right side. Hope this is it!!!!

 

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Your coin is a little earlier die state than the coin in the Hot 50, but I'm seeing the same details on the tips of the leaves and the I in United looks the same too. I think nesvt got it right, a VAM 20.

Please don't take that to the bank, like I said 78's are tough!!

Now go find me a nice 21D to attribute

 

O.K. All I can say is this is soooo cool! My wife bought this for me on EBAY and I just got it a few days ago. As with all my coins I put it under the microscope right away. As soon as I put it under I said to my wife , Uhh honey....we got a tripple star here. She looked and said HUH. Then I knew one of the hot spots is LIBERTY, and I said uhh Honey we got Double LIBERTY here. And she said OH MY GOD! When she says that I know I am on the right track. Part of me wants to E-mail the guy I bought this from ( I checked his history and he had bought this coin on EBAY in late OCT. then turned around and re-sold it! Probably didn't even look with a loop!) and say thanks bud, look what you missed. I am old school, coin change that passes through my hand gets checked. And anything I own is searched over and over. Sometimes I leave it in the safe a few years then take it out and look again just to be sure.

Becky you said it may be a bit earlier, what do you mean? Anyway thank you for coming in and seeing this through, if there is anything else just let me know.

nesvt---Dude you rule!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am still very new to this forum, when I clicked on your name it said I think add to buddy list or something to that effect. If you don't mind I would like to put you on that for future help with morgans.

If you know of any links ect. to help me find out anymore or of course value info, please let me know. :hail: :hail:

Also here is my Daughter, showing the microscope and Coin collection she has almost completed. From pennies, to morgans, to Peace dollars. Share the passion for coin collection and knowledge.

 

cute kid, and good VAM. Excellent find.

 

First of all, your daughter is a cutie!!

Now a little about die states. Vamming can be all about the die state. Here's how it can go. A die cracks, at this point early in the life of the crack, it's just that, a crack. Later on it breaks, now you get those wonderful chunks of metal and it's a VAM. LDS(late die states) almost always are worth way more than EDS(early). Sometimes EDS don't qualify for a special VAM number.

Here's a scan from the Hot 50 book, it's the area I asked you to post a pic of by the wreath. As you can see from the pic, your coin has more detail on the leaf. I am guessing at this point that when your coin was struck, the die was in better condition than it was when the coin in the pic was struck. Just a guess, but you can see the small difference in the area. Though it may be the angle of your pic, or some other related problem. The characteristics are all there, just looks a little different.

 

I was bidding on a Morgan on Ebay that seemed to have a VAM....there was a berry where there wasn't meant to be one....at the last min I got snipped....so I emailed the winner and told him what I saw and how to check it out....I got an email back that said he would look it over and let me know....I've never heard since.

Speedy

 

That's great that your daughter has an interest in the hobby. My daughter had an interest for a short time, but seems to prefer her Gameboy. I need to yank out the batteries. And your wife actually encourages you? You're a lucky man!

I just ran the 1878 8TF Attribution Wizard. I answered a few questions based on your photos. It came back as VAM 20.

I also have the Hot 50 Attribution Wizard CD. Ran that and it also came back as VAM 20.

That die gouge near Liberty's eye is very interesting. There are other Morgans that were given distinct VAM designations just because of a similar die gouge (like the 1878-S "worm eye"). I sent a note to a 1878-P 8TF collector. He's going to check his VAM 20 and see if it has the same die gouge. It may just be a characteristic that wasn't documented. Or maybe it's a different die state and unique enough for a possible new VAM. Either way it's a great looking coin!

 

All I can Say is WOW!

I have been at work all Day, Its retail so you know I have been busy at this time of the year. Thanks for the compliments on my daughter, at her age I wish she wasn't such a cutie!

Becky I will take more angles of that shot in the morning, and thaks for staying on this.

nesvt can this be true? This is the coin that keeps on giving! I was going to ask before your post if that squiggle could tell us something, and now I really hope it does. I will be up in the morning to photo the coin, then another long day at work. Please let me know anything you find out.

Speedy sorry to here about that morgan. better luck next time!

julzboi661 Thanks for the compiment.

To All thanks for all the help, I hope to hear more info. I am getting a CRASH course in Vamming!

 

Sorry it took so long to get back, but here we go!

Light angles make all the difference. I found the Die clash at left side of the wreath.

Also while looking at the Squiggle, I found another feature. You will see it at the right of the picture near the bottom. At 4x I thought I saw something, so I went 10x and it appears to have forks? Also the Squiggle seems to have more to it and at the end is doubled.

Please get back with me with any info.

If you need anything let me know! Thanks

 

Here is the rest.

 

By the way, please do not always pay attention to the pointer. When I can I use it, but usually I just try not to let it get in the way of the picture. Its the only drawback from a microscope.

 

rujam, I heard back from another collector. He couldn't find a VAM 20, but did find a VAM 19. They share the same obverse die. He has the same worm die gouge on his VAM 19, so it more than likely is on all the VAM 20's.

 

So are we still thinking mine may be a Vam 20?, Is there any other area I can photogragh to narrow it down? There is a bold line feature at the top tip of the right wing.

 

Had to break from Christmas to post this. Remember when I photographed the tip of the left wing to find the die clash? I found an odd shape with the light lowered. Off the star to the left of (ONE) think of it as the 2:00 position on the star, I found it again. Then off the same star at the 7:00 and 8:00 position its there too, but joined! What is this shape??? Its not just random lines. I also have a photo of the line at the tip of the right wing, and a much longer version of the WORM or Squggle located above the berry closest to (ONE). What made these shapes?

I welcome any input.

 

Given the diagram from Becky, Am I to look in this area for what may be causing the shape off the star?

Also let me say that I hate to photoshop any pics, but I think I should here. No other pics have been photoshoped other than size adjustments.

 

Someone please take a look at the star and give me an idea what the shapes are.

 

More pics for everyones consideration. Have I found a second Die clash?

On the one pic do I see an 8 or S in the middle?

I did find another Die Gouge? off the opposite star of the eagle. Is it common to have so many on one coin?

The bright area on the edge of the stars, is that meant to be thier orignal location?

And She seems to have a Beard! I believe this is the impression of a wing. But it would be angled the wrong way, Is that correct?

I believe this coin was struck multiple times at different angles. Is that possible?

And of course the arrows.

 

The other pics

 

This Link was sent to me, Kinda neat but I wouldn't rely on it for Grading.

http://web1.chicagonet.net/~baumgart/varslab/

 

Also would someone tell me what causes the (gap) at the top of each 8 on the Date. Got a pic of the lines at the star.