Found 1921 Mercury....could use some help

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I think you did the right thing! It needed to have the dirt rinsed off and it sounds like you did it as responsibly as possible. My comments weren't meant as a criticism, more they were meant to be an accurate representation of how numismatists would view the coin. Try getting it slabbed and that way you will get a professional opinion on whether it was cleaned or original.

 

UPDATE

Well the shop said it would grade cleaned and its iffy if they would actually do it. So I learned an expensive lesson. Do nothing is my new motto. From now on I will just throw it back in the hole.........crap I might just quit detecting, finding nice coins is frustrating.

-M

 

Like the guys have said...you HAD to do something...don't quit...its not worth it!

Send it to ANACS...they will grade cleaned coins and such.

Speedy

 

Congratulations on finding the 1921 mercury dime with lots of detail. Digging it up from the ground with dirt,etc on it the only thing you could do was clean it off. Everybody has an opinion about "cleaning" coins and some go off the deep end with it. If it suits you, put it in your book and don't worry about what every body and their dog thinks about it. Most collectors never find a 1921 Mercury dime, especially one that's been lost in the ground for so long. Most folks end up having to buy the key dates. THIS ONE HAS A SPECIAL MEANING FOR YOU!!! Unless you are planning to sell it, why spend good money to send it off to get some "expert's" opinion? Just take it by a local coin shop or coin show and show it to some dealer's and get their opinions for free.

 

ebay is your friend. just because an anal collector/dealer doesnt want to buy your coin doesnt mean you wont find 30-40 that will buy it on ebay for the same or close to book value on what you think it would grade.

i for example prefer a nice looking detailed coin and would pay the same or more for one that had been reasonably cleaned as oposed to one that graded lower but looked like crap as is so often the case. ( as long as it is authentic of course).

just because the ANA , PCGS, NGC etc have standards on grading and cleaning doesnt mean you have to change your taste, and niether does anyone else. price guides are just that- guides.

oh and dont forget, you can always toss it in your book, whats the rush to get someone else's opinion?

 

Hey guys thanks for the imput. Good tips and info. I'm going to be more carefull next time. I'm sure there is more good stuff. I'm finally hitting some spots that are producing some good coins, including one spot that has given up 3 Mercs in really good shape, inclding the '21, 2 '03 IH in very good shape, a '36 buffalo, and a '11 V nickle. All came from 25'x50' spot in a public park.

As far as the '21 Merc, if I decide to sell it it will go on ebay. After looking around, there are coins being sold in worse shape selling for big bucks with out being professionaly graded.

Thanks again
Mike

 

You found a great coin and did what most anyone would do in that situation. The anti-clean creed of coin collecting is sometimes confusing to me. But I am a novice and don't have much of a collection or experience. I like to look at my coins not a bunch of crud on them. I would never considering cleaning a coin that I buy, but I find it hard to believe that old circulated coins have not been cleaned or wiped at some point in their history.

Have collectors always taken this stance with regard to cleaning circulated coins?

Thanks

 

Well, I as well MD , and in my US COINS 2006 digest (2006? dont get it either) It has it listed in Your condition, I would personally rate a VF-30 as being worth around hmm... 75$ ??? HAH!!!!!!dude, you got yourself a $300+ coin there!!!!

 

I think you did the right thing.

If I found a coin in the ground, I'd wash it off with water without "rubbing it up" like a genie lantern. What else could you do?

Furthermore, I'll even say that more than a few old time collectors will soak old coins in olive oil for a few hours then wash them off again. If you use a thorn from a holly or rose thorn you can even pick out actual dirt from the recesses around the rim, etc. and it's fine. Always gentle...never scrubbed.

As far as the condition goes, the coin has XF details. The sticks on the reverse show nicely. There's even the looks of some "split horizontal bands" around the fasces from the photo. The wing feathers look distinct on the obverse. What I can't tell from the photo is how scratched up the obverse is in front of Mercury's face.....or if there's rim damage.

If there's "damage" then the coin might get knocked back a few points.

Enjoy your find. It's a good one. You found one of the key Merc dates!!

Regards
Houston_Ray