For you variety and photography weenies

shylock

Goldberg's has one of the cooler Indian cent varieties listed in their upcoming auction, an 1880 S1 (FS 009.41) Misaligned Reverse Clash (and minor DDO). From the pic it looks like some of the clash detail has been pounded out of the reverse die, especially when you compare it to the finest known 65RD sold by ANR last year. I've never seen a late die state of this on an MS example so assumed the die was trashed shortly after the clash occured. But I have a feeling it's much more pronounced in person -- a little bit of natural shadow is needed to reveal the full detail of this on a red coin, and Goldberg's coins are uniformly blasted with light. Their technique works great with toned copper proofs but this is one case where a different approach would help those who'll bid online. I'd appreciate some feedback from those who do get see it in person (the price realized should answer that in advance). I'm not sure if their estimated value reflects the die state or their lack of knowledge of what it is.

Goldberg's PCGS 65RD vs. an NGC 64BN