Do I have a proof Morgan?

Before even starting on this one, I want to state that I'm aware the odds are very much against me here. With that said, what do you think of this? Just a really nice (or early struck) business strike, or is there a possibility that it might be a proof?

I bought this because the fields were amazingly reflective and it looked to be in pretty nice condition. I only started taking a closer look at it today and noticed that it looked a little "proof-like" when I was just grabbing some photos of it.

With a very small mintage of just 1,100 I think I can say that this particular coin is not a proof, but I figured asking here couldn't hurt much. Except maybe my feelings a little bit, so please be gentle when you break me the bad news!

 

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No, just looks washed out. The obverse looks a little funny. The reverse in last pic looks very good. The obverse looks unnaturally flat for some reason.

 

If I could trouble you for one more minute... what do you mean by flat?

 

No problem. Look at the reverse, at how that reflects the light, and is very lively. The obverse looks two-dimensional, no depth, dead.

 

Washed out = dull and lifeless surface.
It could be your photography. Place the coin on a table, place the camera on a stack of book(s) or a soup can over the coin. You can hit the shutter or better yet set the time delay. Maybe sensiblesal66 will post his illustration of the set up. This set up will give us an accurate picture that we can use to help you.

 

Gotcha. It might have been the way I was taking the pictures, but probably not. The obverse fields are incredibly mirror-like, which is what drew me to the coin to begin with.

Like I said earlier though, I'm pretty sure this would not be a proof. The odds of me getting my hands on one, especially considering the price, are slim to none. But if I don't ask then I'll never know, so here we are!

Edit to add: the first photo was in the shoe box without the lights on. Just the typical room lighting and nothing else.

 

I did just see that there are (supposedly) a different number of reeds on proof Morgans vs business strikes. Maybe I could place two coins on top of each other to compare? What would be a good thin material to separate them?

 

Umm? Perhaps a Post-It? Or wax paper?

 

I thought about paper of some sort, but paper is rough... maybe rough enough to mark the surfaces. Maybe parchment? I juggled the thought of saran wrap, but I'm not overly fond of that idea. Maybe I'll sacrifice a mylar flip and cut it to size.

 

Do these photos help liven up the obverse, or is it too much light now?

 

The photography is slightly better now. Try it against a Black background. Also, try it this way....

 

Doesn’t look like a proof, but it is very reflective…
…so it might deserve PL= Proof-Like…imo…Spark

 

These are looking a bit better I think

 

I think I paid like $45-50 for this, so I'm totally happy with it. I prefer raw coins over slabbed, and then I get to pop it into my hand-me-down albums. I totally don't expect this to be a proof, but proof-like (or even DMPL) would make my day!

 

Not a proof. I don't see the detail I would expect in a proof.

 

I'm having a tougher than usual go at finding pictures of graded proofs because coinfacts only has like 3 images on there. But searching the auctions is working... slowly.

I'm still convinced this is not a proof, but I do like researching it. Here's one coin I found that sold in 2014.

 

That one is PL, it has somewhat of a cameo. That's a nice coin by the way. Please send it my way.

 

The reverse holds this one back. For a Philly I think that the obverse might make the grade, but the reverse doesn't. Look for the VAM, might give you a better idea of the die pairing.

 

I don't think it is a proof. The fields on both sides of the coin are granular. There are die polish lines I/F/O the device on the obverse. A coin that was minted with specially prepared proof dies would not have these characteristics.