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Grade Revealed: 1915-D PCGS AU-58 Toned Barber Half Dollar
Stuart
Posts: 9,761 ✭✭✭✭✭
Hi Fellow Forum Members,
I've recently come out of numismatic hibernation, and am pleased to share the following 1915-D Barber Half Dollar new purchase with you to get your thoughts, observations and comments.
And to test if I remember how to post images on the new version of our forum!
I was attracted to this specific coin based on the Strong Strike (Full Radial Line definition in Obv. Stars) and what I consider to be attractive Smoky Toning. -- I also like the distinctive Denver mintmark.
Let me know what you think... 
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
6
Comments
Like you said, the strike is quite nice.
I like that look, but prefer it in XF and AU coins, and this coin looks a bit higher grade than that.
How's the luster in-hand?
Congrats on your NEWP...Mike
Are those finger prints in front in ms liberty face?
It appears so to me.
It's difficult to find Barber halves without weakness either on the stars or on the shield. Fun coin.
So is it a 58 or a 62? Hard to tell from the pictures. I like my XF and down with rich toning and my AU and above to be luster bombs with light pastels to Blast White!
Thanks for your posts and questions on this thread.
Here are the answers to your questions to the questions asked so far:
Mike: I have not yet received the coin, so don't yet know how the luster appears in hand -- Photos provided from the seller's auction listing.
KK: Yes, I believe those are finger prints in front of Miss Liberty's face -- will confirm after receiving the coin and examining in hand.
AmWldCoin: Will PM grade to you, as I'd like to invite more descriptive discussion prior to publicly revealing the grade. IMO we tend to overly focus on grade to the exclusion of descriptive discussion of the coin aesthetics.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
I like the coin and am in the 62 camp. The fingerprint is a bit distracting, but not a big deal to me- history. It's a very nice pickup and could make the beginning of a great set!
finger prints aside, I like the strike, the lack of major distracting marks, etc. & the overall look of the coin.
ms or au grade is not relevant.
This particular date and mint is fairly easy to find nice. With last year of issue it seems a significant amount were saved. Harder to find s 15-S. Hard to judge the color from the photos, hope you like it in hand. The finger print will be an issue if you ever want to move it. Overall, above average. Guess it as a 58
I don't like the eye appeal.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
I can see it in a 62 holder.
To me it's really a 63 that was dinged for subdued luster and dark surfaces.
Hey Stuart, I was wondering about you when the bad weather in Houston made the news. Did you come out of that okay?
Nice coin, good detail.... the fingerprint is likely not as distracting in hand...Cheers, RickO
Hi Lava, Good to hear from you & reconnect.
We were very fortunate during Hurricane Harvey to not have experienced home flooding, property damage or power outages during the two week stressful ordeal.
Thanks for your interest in asking and also your concern. All is well.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
I'd much rather have a fully-struck AU-58 depicting more of the coin's design, than a weakly struck Mint State coin exhibiting less detail.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Forget the "technical problems." Beautiful coin! IMO, there is not a soul on earth who would sell this coin anywhere near an AU price.
I'm going way out on a limb with no one else even in the same tree (TPGS's put prices on coins) and take a wild guess. The coin has some friction, nevertheless, MS-62 is too low. If I worked at a TPGS, I'd put MS-63 into the computer. Later in the day, the finalizer would walk over, smack the back of my head and ask me what was I thinking. The coin would go out as an MS-64.
That would make the OP'r happy!
64
I love the look and it is a great strike. I think it merits a 63 all day long.
Certainly circulated. Those who are calling it 63 and 64 need to look at the reverse. Plain as day circulation in the fields. AU for me, and glad to see someone come back to collecting!
Looks unc to me. If there's obvious wear on the reverse, I don't see it. Any "flatness" I'd attribute to striking (wing tips, claws, eagle's head). And if that were the case, the odds are 90% or better the obverse should show rubbing too (forelock, cheek, nostril). I don't see any. While there are a pair of reverse field grazes, that's not wear. For field wear to show up, the high points of the coin would be off color and well-rubbed. Field wear on the reverse and not the obverse? Not likely with that very large and unprotected right obv field.
Could be better on the eye appeal. These days, most buyers want everything: strike, luster, eye appeal, no spots, few marks for the grade, etc. Very few coins qualify. Whether the coin is graded AU58-MS62, not much variation in price.
I'll just guess either 63 or 64; I'm not especially phingerprint phobic so that doesn't bother me too much; I don't care for the toning as imaged but some of these coins will really pop in the sun or under a bright light.
Coins with this amount of rub (as I posted: forget the technical problems) are bought, sold, and slabbed all day long at a minimum of MS-62! When the grade is posted I'll have one more thing to add.
A better photo would be most helpful in assessing the merits of the coin. I doubt this one is showing the coin to its best advantage.
The coin looks MS, I would say 62- 63, on a good day.
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Bryce, I agree with your following comment posted earlier in this thread.
Since I have not yet received the coin, the image posted is the seller’s auction photo.
I’m looking forward to receiving this Barber Half to examine it in hand, and may post new images if the coin looks significantly different in hand.
I suspect that the coin may exhibit more luster (perhaps flashy fields beneath smoky toning) than evident in the photos.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
I’m pleased to provide an update that I received the subject coin in today’s mail. Will try to take some improved images this weekend to depict the coin more accurately as it appears in hand.
I’m extremely happy (ecstatic) with how gorgeous she looks in hand compared to the literally lackluster auction photos. This coin exhibits Flashy (between Satiny & Semi-PL) fields which illuminate through the uniform overall attractive light toning.
This is a case where the Smoky Toning and Fingerprint that is more evident in the photos than the coin in hand, probably turned away some potential buyers - to my purchasing advantage.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Glad to hear you are pleased with the purchase! Look forward to your photos.
Looks like a nice coin in a collector grade and will not break the bank. Last year of the design so you would expect a high quality coin.
I'm happy this turned out well for you and am looking forward to new images.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
I'm pleased to post photos taken today (Oct 20) of my new Toned Barber Half Dollar, that properly depict the coin's Mint Luster and show how the fingerprint appears less obvious in hand than in the original auction photos.
I'll post the grade after receiving additional comments from fellow forum members based on the new photos, when this thread sinks down into forum oblivion.
1915-D Toned Barber Half Dollar
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
I'm going to raise my original guess (MS-62) to MS-63. I assume the reverse scratches are on the plastic. Is that a staple scratch 2 :30 obv? If so back to MS-62.
@Insider2 , Thanks for your post, observations and questions about my 1915-D Toned Barber Half Dollar.
In reply to your questions, I carefully examined the coin (and slab) with an Eschenbach 8x Loupe.
As you thought the reverse scratches, from Eagle’s Neck to Olive Branch and in “E. Pluribus” Wing area, are on the plastic slab.
The small obverse hairline scratch inward from 2nd star under “Trust” is much more evident on the photo, than on the coin in hand. It’s a very shallow hairline scratch extending from the point of the second star towards the bridge of Miss Liberty’s nose, but IMO does not appear to be a staple scratch.
The outside portion of what’s shown on the photo extending from the rim to between stars 1 & 2 under “Trust” must be some type of streak or photo artifact on the plastic b/c it’s not on the coin.
Hope this answers your questions.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Wouldn't have any problem if it was a 64.
2 and 1/2 weeks, post the grade already!
Well, much nicer than in the first post. I like the coin quite a bit. The color is nice and detail is superb. Luster appears good. With all the usual caveats about grading from photos I see this as a 64.
Looks like a completely different coin with the new photos! I like it a lot . I now see a bit of brownish/gray color on the high part of the cheek whether that's rub or not I can't say.
+1
POST NUBILA PHOEBUS / AFTER CLOUDS, SUN
Love for Music / Collector of Dreck
Still looks like the slab needs polished.
Especially only a few barberites from the megathread chiming in here tells the op something...what I don't know.
what happened to the finger prints, magic tilt or were they on the slab?
@DizzleCC , I’m extremely happy (ecstatic) with how gorgeous the subject coin looks in hand compared to the literally lackluster auction photos.
This coin exhibits Flashy (between Satiny & Semi-PL) fields when rotated in light, which illuminate through the uniform overall attractive light toning.
In reply to your posted question, the noted Fingerprint is much more obvious in the original auction photos than the coin in hand, as depicted by my second set of images.
IMO the Smoky Toning and Fingerprint probably turned away some potential buyers - to my purchasing advantage.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Thanks to all fellow forum members who have taken the time to post your thoughts, observations and comments about my 1915-D Toned Barber Half Dollar to keep this thread lively and active with descriptive discussion for 2 1/2 weeks.
I’m pleased to reveal that the subject coin is graded PCGS AU-58, and was purchased during a recent Heritage online auction. Web link for high resolution images: https://coins.ha.com/itm/barber-half-dollars/1915-d-50c-au58-pcgs-pcgs-population-126-482-ngc-census-86-376-cdn-400-whsle-bid-for-problem-free-ngc-pcgs-au58/a/131740-21981.s?ic5=CatalogHome-ActionArea-JumpToLot-071515
IMO on a good day in the grading room, thIs coin could easily be graded MS-62 or 63. It gave me one of those pleasant surprises when opening the package that we sometimes get when the Eye Appeal of the coin in hand exceeds that of the auction photos.
I purchased it b/c I thought it was eye-appealing and solid for the grade. It exhibits Flashy (between Satiny & Semi-PL) fields when rotated in light, which illuminate through the uniform overall attractive light toning.
The previously noted Fingerprint is much more obvious in the original auction photos than the coin in hand, as depicted by my second set of images.
IMO the Smoky Toning and Fingerprint probably turned away some potential buyers - to my purchasing advantage.
IMO we collectors tend to overly focus on grade, to the exclusion of descriptive discussion of the coin aesthetics such as Strike, Luster, and especially Eye Appeal -- which don't always directly translate to grade, which tends to focus on number of contact marks and preservation state.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
A beautiful Barber Half to me.
@georgiacop50
Are you going to change your disagree on me to an agree, now that I was right?
LOL! I didn't come out and say it in this thread but I did in the Barber Half Thread!
The second photo looks like a different coin. Very attractive! I would like to buy using first photo and sell using second.
+1, beautiful 58
POST NUBILA PHOEBUS / AFTER CLOUDS, SUN
Love for Music / Collector of Dreck
One has to be Lil stevie wonder or ray Charles NOT to see finger prints when the coin is in hand.