What should I do with a coin I feel might be a discovery piece?

Hey all!

Just poring through my rolls of coins, found something interesting. I have what looks like clear doubling, split serifs, all the hallmarks of a DDR...but it's not listed in tthe CONECA Master Listings. I'm hoping it's a discovery piece - what is the best way to find out?

I know James Wiles has an attribution service in tandem with ANACS - would it be best to send the coin to him? Are there people who are better for certain series? (It's a Mercury Dime.)

I think it would be the coolest thing I've found all year (even cooler than that 70 proof No S dime) especially if I could get a slab that says "discovery piece" on it...

(BTW - in case you were wondering, I do know what machine doubling looks like, and this is definitely not that. Clear as day.)

Thanks everyone!

 

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How about a picture?

 

Trust only your eyes, send it in, or wait for a good coin show to come around.

 

Hey, thanks for the replies - I've decided to send it to James Wiles for attribution, as he's the CONECA point of contact for these sort of things...

As for the "trust your eyes and send it in" I've found that with NGC if it's not in the CPG it's not getting attributed...so I think it will be ANACS for varieties from this point on.

 

Well, for anyone who initially had interest in this thread, I just got the results back from James Wiles, and I will definitely be getting a coin back in a slab that says "First Reported!" I'll wait to post specifics until I see it adjusted on the CONECA Master Listings on his site...

While I'm waiting for the grading, I'm taking a look on eBay and I see less than 10 listed (many by one person) for $300-$1,000. Now, keeping in mind that a coin is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it...are discovery pieces really worth that much of a premium? (I'm not selling it, because it's my first one, but I would like to put a guesstimate of value in my records...)

 

Congrats on the discovery! I really hope you enlighten us before it is updated on coneca. From what I have noticed, it looks like Dr. Wiles only updates the master listings every 6 months or so. It's great to have a new one to search for!

 

Congratulations! You seem to have some game... a couple of games, actually... anything else in your spare time?

What you say about NGC is interesting. I met a collector last year who inherited some coins; and being a hard-working business woman, she made the time to go to the ANA School for two weeks that summer. Now, she cannot get her coins certified. She said that the instructors stood right there in the laboratory as she authenticated the coins with the instruments at hand. But NGC and PCGS simply refuse to slab a coin that they cannot find in the books.

 

Congratulations! You lucky duck

 

Congratulations on your nice coin.

 

Thanks guys! Maybe (if JW takes that long to update the Master Listings) I'll post a photo once it comes back from ANACS.

 

In response to the OP "What should I do with a coin ..." I was going to say - melt it! but apparently I am too late

 

You are correct in that the value is what someone will pay for it. People can list discovery pieces for $500...that doesn't mean they'll get it. However, I will say that the strength of the doubling is definitely dependent on the value for a discovery piece. I have a coin that was attributed and listed as coppercoins.com. I have the only known example as far as I am concerned, so you might call it a "rarity". However, the doubling is not really significant, and I couldn't really see anyone paying much for my piece based on that.

There was a major 1988 doubled ear Lincoln Cent discovered in 2011, probably the find of the year. It was a discovery piece and quite dramatic...and so far it is unique. It was sold at first for $200, and then for $2,000. So some discovery pieces can certainly sell for a bit of money if they are dramatic enough.

 

Totally agree. In the end...I'm keeping it, so I don't really have to worry about it...so I guess I can make up a number. Of course, as long as I don't crack it out, it will ALWAYS have "First Reported" on that slab...lol

 

Okay, folks...I have an update for you:

ANACS has completed my submission, and I'm happy to announce that my coin has been graded MS62FB. It's not shown in the CONECA Master Listings or ANACS Population Reports yet (my order just finished yesterday after only two weeks worth of processing), but I thought I'd go ahead and share it here:

1941 D Mercury Dime
CONECA DMR-010 DDR-004
ANACS MS62 FB "First Reported"

 

Oddly enough, this coin is NOT the original coin I was thinking was a new variety. According to Dr. Wiles, this 1940 P Mercury dime is only a "minor DDR." I'll post pictures here to see if you agree with that...because I'm not quite so sure I agree:

 

I also learned some good info from ANACS from my submission - when you check your coins under "Order Status", it will display a numerical grade but not any descriptive designations like "FB" or "FS".

I submitted two Jefferson Nickels that received FS designations, one a "5FS" and one a "6FS," as well as my 1941 D DDR-004 that is a Full Bands. It will also not display information like the "First Reported" designation - that info is likewise only on the slab.

 

It is definitely a DDR, but I would agree that it is more along the minor side of things. Still, congrats on getting it slabbed.

 

I totally agree with Dr. Wiles , the doubling on this 1940 coin is way way too minor to be a listed doubled die. there are allready way too many of these minor doubled die coins listed as such and need to be removed from the listings.when you first started this post with what you thought was a new variety this is what I expected.

 

I think I just get the feeling that (similarly to what you say) the line between a listed DD and a minor DD is very slim - to me, the spread on the DDR-004 is marginally larger than the minor DDR...except for the area near the olive branches.

It's not a 1955 DDO Lincoln, but hey...like non_cents said, the -004 is at least slabbed as a "First Reported" and will always be like that for me.