Please grade my Morgan

Just picked this up today for my son's first birthday. It's graded by Numitrust Corporation, but I don't really know who they are, so therefore I don't trust them. Anyway, I'll post what they graded it as later

P.S. Thanks in advance for helping me with the grading

 

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Photos are kinda small..from what I can tell, looks pretty clean.
Let's spin the "Wheel of Morgan" and see what grade we get:

MS-65!

 

small pics, but i don't see any bad marks on the cheek so i go 65 but i bet they gave it a 66

 

A beautiful Morgan. It's hard to tell from the small picture, but from I can see it looks like there is some wear on the cheekbone - which if I am not mistaken is one of the higher points on the coin. However, on the reverse, the highest point - the eagle's chest - seems wear-free. I would have to make an educated guess of MS64-MS65.

Cheers!

 

Thanks for the replies so far! I am getting ready to post larger pictures.

 

I won't be comfortable grading it without the larger pics.

 

lol well I won't keep you waiting any longer

I posted them above in my original post

 

With Morgan Dollars, the first thing I look at is the strike. This coin is fully struck and looks to have good luster which is fairly common for 1885 Morgans. I don't think this strike qualifies as "exceptional" for the date, but its a nicely struck coin.

I don't see any rubs on the high points or any other signs of wear...so the coin is certainly MS. The fields are very clean and the reverse looks great. However, on Liberty's cheek there are a number of hits...including a pretty good sized one just above her jaw line. Because of these marks are pretty distracting to eye appeal, I would grade this coin no higher than MS63.

I'll be willing to bet that NTC graded this coin a MS66 as they are known to overgrade by a few points.

 

Oh and by the way, sorry that the reverse is upside down...my bad lol

 

I've got to call it an MS-63 based on those marks on the cheek

 

From the pics I would say 64. I bet NTC gave it at least a 66.

 

That was what I was grading it...NTC gave it a 63, but I'm not sure what the rest of it means.

MS63 DMPL

what does DMPL mean?

 

I would go along with the MS state but the cheek bone and jaw line scratch is going too bring it down a lot it is one of the higher points like said yet the sheen of the whole coin is maginficent for the pics and the reverse is good looking also yet i wouldnt give it an 63 without seeing bigger pics first.

 

DMPL means Deep Mirror Proof Like. This coin doesn't appear to be a DMPL but the pictures could be deceiving. A true DMPL coin should look like a proof and have a cameo affect. You should be able to read text on a card held 6 inches away from the coin in the reflection in the fields to be a DMPL.

Here's an example of a coin that was graded PL which is a step below DMPL: To me, your coin looks like it is just blast white without the proof like look...but again, it could be the photo.

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Well, I can see my own reflection in the coin, and when I hold something up, I can see words but it's not clear enough to be able to read the words. I don't think I would call it mirror like, or proof like.

 

I just double checked in my ANA grading guide. It says with coins that have a proof like appearance...this is the diagnostic. If you can read text in the fields held 1 to 2 inches away it is semi-prooflike. If you can read it when held 2 to 4 inches way it is prooflike. If you can read it more than 4 inches away it is DMPL. Does your coin look like it is almost a proof or does it just have nice blast white luster?

I also checked in the VAM book which is basically the best reference books about Morgan's and it says that proof like 1885 coins are "fairly available."

I can't tell from the pictures, so you will have to decide on your own if the coin has a proof like appearance and if so to what extent.

 

I just turned on my overhead lights and used a business card, and I could read the heading on the card from 1 inch to about 7 or 8 inches away. I guess maybe it is proof like. Oh well, doesn't matter too much anyway, it's just something i got to give to my son to get him into collecting when he gets older. I'm gonna try to put together a nice silver dollar type set for him, so he can go through them and pick what he likes. Also, I only paid $30 dollars for this coin, so I don't feel like I got ripped off or anything on it Thanks for all the replies, and thanks for the help Camaro!

 

Is it just me or does the coin look cleaned? Has a dull look. The face has some odd looking marks. Can we get bigger pics. I am sure it's a nice coin, but just can't tell from the photos.

 

It sounds like it very well could be a DMPL coin then. I think you did very well for $30.

It doesn't look cleaned to me. I think the dull look you are seeing is due to direct light when it was photographed. I think its a nice unaltered coin. The only problems with it are the hits to the cheek which hurt the grade quite a bit IMHO.

 

I took three different photos of my DMPL Obverse Morgan and couldn't get any of them to turn out looking the the OP's photo. Here they are!

Two overhead fluorescent lights (10 & 2) with no angle (camera directly over coin).



Two overhead fluorescent lights (10 & 2) at an angle so the camera does not appear in the image.



Diffused lighting blasted over the surface of the coin.




So my photos don't really prove anything other than I had some fun and killed some time.

BTW, I like the coin in the OP and was going to guess that NTC graded it MS64. I can't tell from those photos if it is at all prooflike, but it does not appear to be to me.