The Top 6 Morgans From My Set
david3142
Posts: 3,529 ✭✭✭✭✭
After I finished all of the write-ups for the main set, it was suggested I do a top 5 favorites list. I couldn’t narrow it down to 5 so let’s go with 6. Here’s a little story about how I acquired each of these coins.
1879-CC MS63+PL CAC
I saw this coin while lot viewing at Stacks. I already had a Capped CC in XF45 but I feel this is an important date in the Morgan series. I wanted both varieties and I was willing to splurge for an MS coin. This one looks fully DMPL to me and in contrast to many 79 or 80-CCs does not have a weird surface quality. I wish I could describe that better, but either way it’s not an issue here. This one is frosty and although it has some chatter the mirrors are very deep and free of haze. It was the most expensive coin I had bought at the time (and is probably now the most valuable) but it went relatively cheap at the time, especially for the quality.
1879-O MS65
This coin came from the famous @AuroraBorealis collection. I told him that I was particularly interested in toned examples of better dates and he showed me this coin. 79-O Morgans are hardly ever found with color and I already had a 64+ that I liked a lot. (That one has a fantastic bowl luster that is highly unusual for any New Orleans coin.) This one is still miles better. Wayne calls it Triple Treat for the repeated crescent pattern. It is a near twin for another coin on this list.
1881-S MS67 CAC
This is a tough call because I have a “duplicate” 81-S that is actually even nicer, but this is a 67 so it’s the one I consider to be part of my Morgan set rather than in my toned collection. This is a Northern Lights coin, but I didn’t buy it in the auction. A few months later I was emailing with Laura and she offered me three coins from the sale that the original buyer was looking to resell. I knew I loved the coin but I was a touch hesitant because it was the most expensive one I had ever bought at the time (since passed by a few others on this list). That feeling prevented me from buying another of the three that later resold for significantly more.
1885-O MS64+ CAC
I knew about this coin from having seen it on collectivecoin.com where it was owned by forum member @cameonut2011. That site has a ranking of the most viewed coins and for a while this was number 1. I finally got to see it in person at a Legend lot viewing (now sporting a plus grade) and I was blown away. I believe this has the best color of any Morgan in my collection. I feel lucky to have won it for a relatively good price, too. I have an 85-O in 66* and I believe in every other instance I picked the higher grade for my set but this one was just too nice.
1889 MS65+ CAC
A Legend representative texted me a picture of this coin after it came in but before it went to CAC and was put in an auction. I was immediately smitten. 1889 is by no means common with color but there are actually quite a few nicely toned Morgans of this date. However, I hadn’t (and still haven’t) seen anything approaching this level of saturated color. I won this coin at exactly my top bid and I feel extremely lucky that it held!
1904-O MS67 CAC
This is a slightly more interesting story than the 1889. I have a 1904-O in 64DMPL that I really enjoy but I also have a toned 20th century type set and I wanted a knockout coin for that. I was narrowly outbid on this coin at auction twice! The first time (and I had completely forgotten about this sale until I was looking at some old bid history last week) the coin was in a 66 holder with no sticker. It went for a bit over $5K. The second time, only a few months later it sold for north of $15K in a 67 CAC holder. Roadrunner bought it but just a few months after that sold many (all?) of his toned coins and I picked it up, finally, for about $9K.
I would love to see other people create threads with their top 5 (or 6 
) coins from their sets! Or just show a favorite or two here!
Comments
I’ve loved your whole set. This grouping is awesome together.
As soon as I have some coins that can hang with any of yours I’ll do a Top 5 post
All stunning coins.
Just exceptional, thanks for sharing!
I may have drooled a little bit
Coins are Neato!
"If it's a penny for your thoughts and you put in your two cents worth, then someone...somewhere...is making a penny." - Steven Wright
So glad you came back with your favorites. I especially like the 1904-O. 👍🏻👍🏻
"Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
Beautiful!
Awesome selections!
That 1885-O has the best combination of color and luster that I have seen from any New Orleans minted Morgan.
Very nice coins and terrific write up
👍👍
Thanks very much for the suggestion! I had fun last night going through all 103 of them (still no 91-CC or 01-S) trying to pick out my favorites. I think because of the way I’ve allocated money to the set and my personal preference for eye appeal, none of the real keys made the list. For example, my 1893-S is my lowest graded Morgan and probably only the 10th most valuable coin in my set. The 89-CC is far below that in terms of value. Although I tried very hard to pick out nice ones, it’s hard for circulated examples to measure up to the superb gem commons, even taking rarity into account. The 7th coin would probably have been my 1895-S though, which is certainly a much better date.
Cool
@david3142... Thanks for the write up and the great pictures. Though I am not a collector of color, I will say, you have done much like @AuroraBorealis did with his remarkable collection - and yes, I see you did get some of his coins. Cheers, RickO
Awesome coins and nice story behind each. Thanks for sharing. Haven't seen that much color since the 60's
Wow, that's an amazing group of Morgans! I love the color, I hope to add a toned Morgan like one of yours to my collection one day.
Great choices for your favorites. I've enjoyed this journey through your set.
Keeper of the VAM Catalog • Professional Coin Imaging • Prime Number Set • World Coins in Early America • British Trade Dollars • Variety Attribution
Nice set - a key date dimple and a small herd of moose!
Great coins!
www.brunkauctions.com
When are you going to stop teasing me with the photos and just send them to me.
Awesome looking coins.
Successful BST with ad4400, Kccoin, lablover, pointfivezero, koynekwest, jwitten, coin22lover, HalfDimeDude, erwindoc, jyzskowsi, COINS MAKE CENTS, AlanSki, BryceM
Beautiful coins- congratulations!
Thank you all for the kind words! If you’ll permit me just one more Morgan thread I have one planned for my top 5 duplicates - coins which I own for their color alone that for whatever reason aren’t in the main set.
After that I plan on doing a series for my toned type set!
Love your 1879-CC PL.
That coin is a special one....It really stands out.
Combines rarity with eye-appeal.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
I have never been a fan of Morgan dollars. And with that said your toned examples greatly enhance Ms. Liberty's beauty. You chose your examples very well........but how many more toned examples do you need to complete your set.......and is that even possible?
OINK
Nice top 5 or 6. Interesting that you didn't pick any normal MS (non pl or non-tone that is). I think i am getting an idea of what you like. You mention next might have been 95S. That is normally not a nice one with polish lines and rougher look. I suspect it is maybe a spl. Again nice selection.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=_KWVk0XeB9o - Ruby Starr (from 'Go Jim Dandy') Piece Of My Heart
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https://youtube.com/watch?v=D0FPxuQv2ns - Ruby Starr (from 'Go Jim Dandy') Maybe I'm Amazed
RLJ 1958 - 2023
Thank you! My primary goal is to complete the date/MM set and I only have two coins left for that. I was curious about the breakdown so I categorized them all:
Rainbow toned: 24
Nicely toned: 11
PL: 22
DMPL: 18
One-sided PL/DMPL: 6
White: 9
Circulated: 13
In one case (my 1885) it is both rainbow toned and PL. I am also trying to complete a date PL/DMPL set and I'm missing a few for that (1893 is by far the toughest). I have also thought about a toned date set but that's not a priority right now. A true rainbow date/mint set is impossible but Sunnywood/Simpson came about as close as one can get.
@lilolme - my 1895-S is a 62PL but has the look of a higher grade. Like the 79-CC it combines rarity and eye appeal (but ranks behind that coin in both).
Not a collector of color, just another one of us old white guys...
Thanks for sharing this, @david3142! I always enjoy seeing folks’ favorite coins or “box of 20”, and it’s especially cool to hear about the stories behind each coin. Look forward to seeing and reading about your top 5 duplicates, and hopefully more sets after that too!
You have some beautiful Morgans. Is there a 1895 proof in your plans?
Thanks! No plans for the 1895. I think proof Morgans can look amazing but I am a business strike collector.
Superb 👍
Great pieces, and it makes it all more special reading what you wrote for each piece.
One can tell how passionate you are and it shows.
These are just great, congrats on meriting to get to this point.
Very nice and very high end!
I'm sorry I overlooked this thread. Congratulations on the amazing set!
I absolutely love the cameo PL 1879-CC. The mirrors look very deep and reflective for the designation, and the cameo definitely adds to the eye appeal. Even among PL coins for this tough issue, it is a stand out and worthy of a nice premium.
I also love the toners, especially the 1881-S. I have always loved that shade of green, blue, and pink together. The toning is scarce enough on its own, but you managed to do it with a superb gem without an excessive number of bag marks. And of course, I love the 1885-O. I am glad that it went to someone that appreciates it as much as I did.
79 CC is a premium coin!