1810 $5 Gold with severe cleaning magically removed
ArizonaRareCoins
Posts: 679 ✭✭✭✭
This 1810 $5 Gold was heavily cleaned/scrubbed on the right obverse to remove graffiti and was in an NGC AU details-cleaned holder:
https://coins.ha.com/itm/early-half-eagles/half-eagles/1810-5-large-date-large-5-bd-4-r2-improperly-cleaned-ngc-details-au/a/1244-13640.s?ic4=GalleryView-Thumbnail-071515#
Today we can find it cured of it's issues as it now resides in a PCGS AU-55 holder:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/201687554447/?rmvSB=true
Presto-changeo,,,,Amazing
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Comments
I didn't see anything about the graffiti removal. Was this coin originally yours ?
Do you think that the coin was submitted raw to PCGS for their restoration service?
Interesting.... with the graffiti removed, should that coin now be labeled 'altered surfaces'??? Cheers, RickO
Yuck. These are the same guys that had a once beautiful 1851 toned half eagle which became a messed with widget.
Latin American Collection
It still looks improperly cleaned to me
AU coins should have a high percentage of luster remaining. Lacking that "cleaned" is unavoidable.
Minimally the coin now has "molested surfaces". OP has provided a service to Forum members. Doctoring is rampant, avoid this seller. Lesson here is, use a trusted dealer for purchases.
I don't see the scandal in this one. The earlier set of images with the coin in an NGC holder make no mention of graffiti and I see no evidence of graffiti having been on the coin in those images. The latter set of images with the coin in the PCGS holder make the surfaces appear to have been undisturbed from one holder to the next. In my opinion, this coin found itself on either side of the cleaning line-in-the-sand at NGC and PCGS. Either way, I agree that many older coins, especially older gold coins, have too many hairlines on them to make me comfortable.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
the coin is very much market acceptable.
Cleaned yes still market acceptable its 200 plus years and coins get a lot more leeway from that era.
Appears the severe cleaning statement might have been a bit of exaggeration.
Gold is not reactive with most acids, correct?
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
Where is/was the graffiti?
Would like to know for my education.
I'm looking at the pics on my phone and it isn't readily apparent to me, but I'm still learning with gold.
It's ironic that the graffiti over the "D" in "5 D" is more visible in the later image.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
I would buy it.....for the right price, which sounds exactly what the new seller did....
I wouldn't buy it for the collection...
siliconvalleycoins.com
The area above the eagle's head on the reverse makes me think that something might have been smoothed there at some point, going by the second, brighter image. At any rate the coin shows evidence of cleaning to me on both sides.
@BillJones - I agree 100%. That's the area that should have done the coin in. The smoothing above the eagle. That certainly doesn't look original.
Not an attractive coin and obviously messed with. There areas on both obverse and reverse which look like they've been brushed... pass.
'dude
Clearly had some russet to brown toning on the obverse that someone didn't like, so they removed it, leaving an unnatural look. I'm frankly surprised that it wound up in a no-problem holder.
My friend Anthony previously owned this coin in an NGC AU-graffit holder. He scrubbed the graffit off as it was light. The cleaning is quite harsh on this coin as you can see the extreme brightness left from the scrubbing. Baffling as to how this coin got into a no problem holder.
This is why I often buy "details" coins. There is much more value in them unless you are buying premium quality top-of-the-line material that most of us cannot afford.
A 1799 $10 UNC details with a few scratches for 11,000 or a 1799 $10 MS62 that is questionable as to whether it should have graded (hence the 62 oftentimes) for 40,000...no brainer to me to buy the details coin. I think many collectors currently devalue "details" coins by too much.
Doctored
Thank you for the additional information. It would have been quite helpful had you included this information in your first post instead of withholding it and perhaps confusing the thread.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
interesting. great example of coin doctoring.
It happens. In prior posts I have mentioned coins with similar changes between TPG's.
Am I the only one who sees this???
I mention it not only because it's amusing, but because it demonstrates so perfectly how a comparison of the before/after pictures can be so deceiving.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.