Could someone explain the reverse on this Seated Quarter?

MrBreeze

There are two spots on the reverse where the lettering seems to be faint/worn off/poorly struck/whatever. What causes this?

ziggy29

The coin looks off to me, particularly the mintmark and the "QUAR. DOL." on the reverse. Are you sure it's real?

MrBreeze

It is currently slabbed by ANACS. It was purchased from a very knowledgeable Seated dealer who also has asked to buy it back. I can only assume that it is real.

JJM

yeah, something doesnt look quite right there?

lathmach

Is this your coin, MrBreeze?

Ray

MrBreeze

Ray

Yes

ziggy29

The '60-S quarter is extremely rare in the level of preservation. That's part of the reason for my suspicion.

tradedollarnut

I've seen this effect before. Note the denticles high and low and the ST in STATES.



Note the D in UNITED and the S in STATES

coinlieutenant

TDN, next time you illustrate a point, could you do it with a little nicer coin please. No crap allowed here.

tradedollarnut

<< <i>TDN, next time you illustrate a point, could you do it with a little nicer coin please. No crap allowed here. >>



True ... it *is* only an MS64.

ziggy29

<< <i>TDN, next time you hijack a thread, could you do it with a little nicer coin please. No crap allowed here. >>



Seriously, though -- does that 1840 have a little bit of a rim clip? Looks like I see a little of the Blakesley Effect on the obverse.

MrBreeze

Any thoughts on potential causes, having seen similar patterns on other coins?

partagas

In Breen's encylcopedia he mentions that the reverse dies where leftovers from 1859. Only 4 new obverses where sent. so perhaps it is die wear.

Also he mentions, not on this coin but on some other earlier quarters. That foreign material sometimes adhered to the dies, thus causing weakness in some parts of the coins strike.

RichieURich

1860-S quarters are known for having reverses one to two grades below the obverse grade. Partagas has provided a good explanation for this situation.

Coinosaurus

Very sweet coin. Appears to be a perfect coin for the grade level. FWIW, I don't see the same die wear on mine.

TDN, those were some nice pics, but if you could show us an unc 60-S quarter I will be REALLY impressed

DaveG

Perhaps it's just grease partially clogging the letters?

roadrunner

The 1854-0 Huge "O" quarter has a similar problem with the "R" in
QUAR DOL somewhat erradicated. Not exactly sure of the cause other than die deteriation. The 54 huge "O" is heavily die cracked in that area as well. As TDN showed, it is often the upper half letters of "United States of America" that show some weakness throughout many dates in the seated quarters, halves, and dollars. Weakness in the "ST" and "AM" seems to be fairly prevalent. I was not aware of any early S mint seated quarter that is known for having the reverse a grade weaker than the obverse. If anything it seems that sometimes the obverses have more overall weakness on some dates/varieties.

At first glance my thought was that the "S" mintmark on this 60-s is too big and that the wiped out "R" only adds suspicion. But pictures can be deceiving, esp if ANACS said it was ok. To my mind, the only mint mark in the quarter series that is the same size as the reverse lettering is the Huge "O." The large O and large S varieties are slightly smaller. This is one easy way to compare. And in this photo the "S" looks on par with the legend lettering. How does the "S" look with the coin in hand?

roadrunner

cladking

It looks like it's just an out of alignment reverse die with a little grease in
the mintmark area. Note the strenght of the strike opposite this area. Both
of these problems are very common on moderns.

roadrunner

I was not aware of that peculiarity in that area (weak "R") on any 60-s quarters. Can Ray or someone else who has seen a dozen of these shed some light? Do not have the Briggs book but probably only one reverse die was used.

roadrunner

MrBreeze

The Briggs reference states, "UNIT-QU" very weakly impressed into die. That would explain that part. Nothing is mentioned about the "missing AR."

All of the 1860-S quarters had the large "S" mintmark.

MAD4MORGANS

I took the liberty to make these bigger. I think the denticles and rim on the reverse are

Does the outline of the eagle look tooled or is it just circulation grime?

Coinosaurus

The discoloration on the outline of the eagle may be die crumbling/erosion, would have to see in person to be sure. That would also explain the weak lettering. Maybe this is just a late die state coin.....

roadrunner

The obv closeup shows the "860" to be quite angular.
Could just be the photography?

roadrunner