1853 no arrows half dime on ebay...and...why not a spot in registry?

joejeweler

I was just reading the June 2003 issue of "Coins" magazine and picked up on the recommendation for the 1853 No Arrows Half Dime in the article entitled "10 Top coin buys"....(they also have an article entitled "Stick to the keys" in the same issue). Interesting on the history of the coin, and the fact that so many were probably melted when the law changed the silver weight to a lesser amount "Arrows" variety.

A quick ebay search yielded the linked coin below, which is quite attractive for the grade and i was really tempted to pull the trigger at $750.00 Nope......first do some pricing research on the PCGS site since i don't get a subscription to the sheets and only an occasional gift from a dealer friend. Well, the PCGS site only lists this series under the type section, with no listing for the date, or even a No Arrows designation.

1853 No Arrows AU58 PCGS Half Dime Nice Color


So, a "Coinfacts" search yielded the following (below) fairly recent auction appearences and sales figures. Seeing the NGC MS64 selling in June 2001 for only $891.25, a PCGS MS62 in August 2000 selling for $632.50 have me wondering if this current offering is a bit pricey?

The article in "Coins" stated the 1853 No Arrows half dime in MS65 has actually dropped from it's all time high from $8,500 to $3,000! Don't know where they get those figures from, but that MS66 PCGS example seems to have been a bargain in June 2001 at only $2,185

Well.....it's been a long way here to my real question and why i didn't pull the trigger on it.......Why doesn't the coin fit into the NGC "Registry Set"? (i haven't checked yet if PCGS has a slot open for it?)

Anyway, no slot for it...... yet it appears there should be! After all, the 1909 Lincolns have a slot for plain and V.D.B coins. Seems a slot for "arrows" and "no arrows" would be appropriate since it is a change in type!

I've probably shot myself in the foot here, as one of you vultures will probably snap it up while i'm thinking about it! If you do, at least i'll have the satisfaction of knowing it won't help your sets! Joe T.

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Recent appearances:

PCGS MS-66. Ex - Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc.'s "Long Beach Signature Sale", May 31-June 2, 2001, Lot 7972, illustrated, sold for $2,185.00

MS-65 (illustrated above). Ex - Superior Galleries' "Pre-Long Beach Sale", October 1-3, 2000, Lot 3016

NGC MS-64. Ex - Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc.'s "Long Beach Signature Sale", May 31-June 2, 2001, Lot 7971, not illustrated, sold for $891.25 From the Collection of Dr. Joseph M. Seventko

PCGS MS-62. Ex - Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc.'s "Philadelphia 2000 Signature Sale", August 6-7, 2000, Lot 6861, not illustrated, sold for $632.50

Varieties:

Notes:
The finest "No Arrows" examples graded by PCGS are 2 MS-67's.

maddogale

pretty coin, JJ, if you really like it anyway, why not pull the trigger? Don't worry about me...bit pricey for me right now.

SethChandler

JJ,

What a nice coin! This has always been one of my favorites, I actually bought a PCGS MS62 years ago for $700. I have the 1853 NA Dime too, its an EF.

The set:

1853 NA Half Dime
1853-0 NA Half Dime
1853 NA Dime
1853 NA Quarter
1853-O Half......major $ for this one.

If it was me contemplating this, I'd wait, this half dime IS around. Be patient.

Seth

wingedliberty

I would recommend it highly. Its one of my favorites.

Brian

keithdagen

I have seen this coin in person and can say that the scan does the coin zero justice. I have purchased two stunning half dimes from the same seller, and this is equal to the other two. If you are looking for this piece for your set, DO NOT HESITATE.

joejeweler

Keith......i have no question the coin is very nice, and the scan probably doesn't do the coin justice..........BUT.......

......you missed the point that i would love to add this coin to my NGC "Eye Appeal" Type Set.......except there is NO spot for it! Nada......ziltch........NGC(and possibly PCGS) do not recognize it for incusion in the USA Type set.

Anyone know why?



<< <i>I have seen this coin in person and can say that the scan does the coin zero justice. I have purchased two stunning half dimes from the same seller, and this is equal to the other two. If you are looking for this piece for your set, DO NOT HESITATE. >>

Catch22

Although I don't believe 7 or 8 hundred is too much for the coin, it's not a terribly difficult coin to find. The New Orleans mint coin of the same date is much more scarce. Many of the No-Arrows coins were melted making the 1848 through 1853 Seated coins disproportionately scarce relative to their mintage figures. If the series was widely appreciated, there are numerous bargains relative to survival rates and current pricing. Perhaps someday....right after 3CN's take off?!

Catch22

...by the way, there have been a few small hoards of Uncirculated examples pop up over the years and may explain the modest auction prices realized.

lordmarcovan

Hmm. Wynn Carner.

I don't like the guy much, personally- we got off on the wrong foot with each other once- but I gotta hand it to him- he has nice taste in selecting his inventory. That's a beautiful little coin.

keithdagen

......you missed the point that i would love to add this coin to my NGC "Eye Appeal" Type Set.......except there is NO spot for it! Nada......ziltch........NGC(and possibly PCGS) do not recognize it for incusion in the USA Type set.

The coin (for Type purposes) is considered like any other Half Dime (Stars Obverse w Drapery) 1840-1860.

lordmarcovan

My answer was gonna be the same as Keith's, but I wasn't clear on if that was what you were asking or not.

roadrunner

Joe,

The 1853 NA half dimes through quarters are just type coins really and represent the stars obverse or no motto types. While they are low mintage coins, and probably far tougher to find in nice circ than in UNC, I've always felt they were somewhat overrated in UNC, especially the half dime and dime. But they are still desireable coins but no doubt saved at a larger % than their cousins of the same period.
A nice 1852 half dime is far cheaper to get for one's type set than the 1853 NA.

Even with all that, I did buy a very nice 1853 NA half dime at Goldberg's June Long Beach sale last year for $4000. Coin was a PCGS MS66 in an older green tag holder. Has exceptionally clean surfaces and to me wonderful deeper auburn and purple toning with vibrant luster. I felt the coin was much closer to 67 grade than to 66. While deeper toning like this is not as popular today as dipped out white pieces, I feel they will eventually come back stronger than their untoned friends. The 1853 gets attention because of low mintage.....not what got saved. The later unheralded "O" mints (56-0, 58-0, 59-0) are much tougher in gem grade than the 1853 NA as no one hoarded then at time of issue. But all of these dates are neat coins. The 1853 NA probably becomes a better value in the lower MS grades than it is in gem.

roadrunner

joejeweler

Aahhhhh........brain fart expelled!

Now i have to really consider the coin.....since it has that look i'm after....

thanks all...



<< <i>......you missed the point that i would love to add this coin to my NGC "Eye Appeal" Type Set.......except there is NO spot for it! Nada......ziltch........NGC(and possibly PCGS) do not recognize it for incusion in the USA Type set.

The coin (for Type purposes) is considered like any other Half Dime (Stars Obverse w Drapery) 1840-1860. >>

oreville

My own take on this:

I happen to be a type collector of dimes including the liberty stars dimes in ultra high mint state. Now, I realize the story below is about half dimes but I believe my dime theory is relevant to half dimes.

I own a 1839 PCGS MS-67 (green insert) No Drapery LS dime (with medium toning) as well as the 1859 PCGS MS-68 (green insert) LS dime (with significant toning) . Both are with stars. My current need is for the 1853 w/a. I missed not once but THREE times that elusive 1853 w/a dimes in PCGS MS-68. Once it was with Parrino, then it was sold by Heritage auctions a few weeks after 9/11/01 and then yet again though O'Connor a year ago. Always found out too late or caught myself without just enough $.

Now, I have no need for a 1853 n/a for my type set. To me, it would duplicate what I already have with the 39 and 59. The 1853 w/a has more than 4 times the demand of the 1853 n/a.

Why? This summarizes some of the reasons:

(1) Detailed type collectors want the 1853 w/a.
(2) The same detailed type collectors who want the 1853 w/a will usually want another stars example with a date that is NOT the 1853! They want as much date assortment as possible.
(3) Date collectors of LS dimes usually want the 1853 w/a dimes and pass over the 1853 n/a.
(4)Collectors of LS dimes generally get more excited about getting as high a grade as they can afford which leads them to cheaper dates which is available for much less than the 1853 n/a.

Morganluver

Just for your information, Greysheet lists this coin at AU-$265, MS60-$510, MS63-$650, MS64-$875, MS65-$1900. I know it's an uncommon date and it looks pretty nice, but it seems like with patience you could find one in a better grade for about the same money. Just my opinion.