Did Anyone See In-Hand The 1892 Barber Half NGC MS65/Gold CAC At Heritage?
TomB
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This is a legitimate question and I am not attempting to troll the coin, NGC, CAC, the buyer or anyone else. Heritage (HA) just sold an old holder NGC MS65/Gold CAC 1892 Barber half tonight and the coin cost the buyer $3,360 all-in, which is pretty much in-line with generic MS66 money. However, the images of the coin just didn't make it appear appealing at all. If I were the consignor and the coin actually looked appreciably better than the images I would have been livid that they didn't provide something better. Alternatively, if the images are accurate then I am left scratching my head at the grade and sticker combination.
It was lot 3213 in the November Signature Auction. I've looked for a previous sale of this coin going back a quarter century and have not found one, so I have no other images to compare. The HA images are below-
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There is no question that bidders who are able to examine coins in hand have a huge advantage over those who can only see coins on-line.
The only plausible explanation to me is the coin is a luster bomb in hand. However, that mud brown reverse appears very unappealing, really don’t know how one gets to 66 with that, even with booming luster.
Ugh. The reverse looks terminal and the giant THUMB print on the obverse is awful. Whoever submitted that to CAC must have been jumping for joy when that gold bean came back.
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I agree; however in this day and age of old holder and sticker frenzy, it wouldn’t surprise me if an online buyer went all in based on those attributes and the coin’s appearance was ancillary.
No doubt it's all about the sticker.... I have sold several unimpressive but gold stickered commems recently only to find them in dealer inventory for double my price because there is still a fanatical if thin market for anything with a gold sticker.
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I'm a novice with the US market (but a pro with the Canadian market), but I would hazard a guess for 'sticker mania'.
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The sticker thing is what it is, but in the end the only opinion I trust is my own...
Hard pass on the subject coin if I was in the market for a high-grade piece. It is ugly.
The coin did not "go crazy" for the sticker or the holder. It's a 65 with a gold sticker which sold for 66 retail money. Typically gold sticker mania is 2-3 grades up but at least next grade up with a plus.
Which is why OP asked if anyone had seen it in hand because the price is so much LOWER than expected, not higher.
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Actually @lermish Tom specially stated "Alternatively, if the images are accurate then I am left scratching my head at the grade and sticker combination".
I think the lowered price might be telling of what bidders saw, in-hand or otherwise. I suspect it did NOT sell to a bidder who viewed it in hand, but that is pure speculation.
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And one of the other possibilities is that it did sell to a bidder who viewed it in hand and realized the bidder would be getting it for a good price as a result of the picture being so bad.
This is an example of why multiple photos or videos are important.. the shown photo is only accurate from one point of view. If the item is that impressive in hand to warrant such bidding, the courtesy of the in-hand experience must be passed on to the online bidder to the best of the ability of the seller.
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That very well may be the case. But, sight unseen, if told about a Gold Sticker + Older Holder, most would estimate a price FAR higher than what this coin fetched. So, I think any "sticker mania" was muted as people saw the coin (via pictures or in hand) and did not care for it regardless of stickers and holders.
I think it's a great refutation of the people who think TPG/CAC fans only buy the plastic/bean. The bidders bid on the coin, not the holder/sticker!
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When I think of the 1892 half, I think of this kind of luster! A very nice MS-64 here, that sold out of Stacks auction a year ago.
That one looks dipped and retoned from the images.
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CAC didn't think so.
Is it just me.....or is there so much discoloration and "blotches" on that coin that the MS-65 grade is on a curve ?
Many are assuming that this lifeless fingerprinted NGC 65 was graded by a higher power...most of us don't think this is a 65 selling for 66 money as some here have said. Perhaps a beanless coin would have sold for 64 money to a veteran collector. "For those who believe, no explanation is necessary"...from the screenplay for Our Lady of Fatima
Commems and Early Type
What if they did, but considered it market acceptable as an "A" coin because the surface preservation is so good? Is that something JA would do, or are all dipped/retoned coins rejected?
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