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Seated half dollar sale

logger7logger7 Posts: 9,216 ✭✭✭✭✭

This AU58 graded 1875 Seated 50c sold for $555, what am I missing on this result as it is around MS63 Greysheet pricing?

Comments

  • jesbrokenjesbroken Posts: 10,814 ✭✭✭✭✭

    More than one person wanted it. If a coin you need is found at auction and it truly fills all of your requirements for a collection, the sky may be the limit.
    Jim


    When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln

    Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain
  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,216 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jesbroken said:
    More than one person wanted it. If a coin you need is found at auction and it truly fills all of your requirements for a collection, the sky may be the limit.
    Jim

    Yes, that happens on tougher coins, or varieties, superior eye appeal, etc. but this was an ebay "buy it now".

  • calgolddivercalgolddiver Posts: 1,582 ✭✭✭✭✭

    someone liked it at the price point

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  • Project NumismaticsProject Numismatics Posts: 1,743 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Price guides are just guides! Looks like great eye appeal and maybe looks even better in hand.

  • thebeavthebeav Posts: 3,992 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Somebody working on a 58 set ?

  • Cougar1978Cougar1978 Posts: 9,026 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 12, 2025 1:00PM

    Not surprised. It’s a really nice coin. I bet a number of them were in a bid war.

    Investor
  • LJenkins11LJenkins11 Posts: 828 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Seems reasonably priced and maybe the grey sheet is a bit off? Two separate 1875 50C sold this year on GC via auction for $574 and $519 (including buyer fees) and each was without a CAC sticker.

    https://www.greatcollections.com/Coin/1904941/1875-Seated-Liberty-Half-Dollar-PCGS-AU-58

    https://www.greatcollections.com/Coin/1786344/1875-Seated-Liberty-Half-Dollar-PCGS-AU-58

  • TomBTomB Posts: 22,318 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Are you certain you are looking at the correct row for Greysheet prices? I don't have a Greysheet in front of me at the moment, but according to CoinFacts the last five of these that sold at auction in PCGS MS63 have averaged $1,128 with the lowest being $780 and the last five of these that sold at auction in NGC MS63 $772 with the lowest being $624. This data goes back over five years with the lower numbers tending to be older sales.

    The CoinFacts site has a guide value of $1,200 in MS63 and $675 in AU58 and shows the last two AU58 examples in PCGS holders having sold at $600 and $1,080 with those sales already over three years old.

    Since most folks don't subscribe to the Greysheet, but CoinFacts is free on the net for everyone, I would suspect many people rely on that CF data instead of the GS data. Regardless, if you are correct that GS states this is a $555 or so coin in MS63 then GS is simply out of touch with the market in this niche (Seated material), which is something that has been the case for decades.

    Thomas Bush Numismatics & Numismatic Photography

    In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson

    image
  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,216 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I got this from Heritage:

    Price Guide for 1875 50C, MS*
    Grade CDN CPG® (Retail) | CPG CAC CDN Greysheet | CDN CAC CDN Bluesheet NGC
    Price Guide NGC+ PCGS
    Price Guide PCGS+
    55 $305,
    $365 (CAC) $235,
    $282 (CAC) --- $300 --- $450 $550
    58 $360,
    $430 (CAC) $275,
    $330 (CAC) --- $365 --- $675 $725
    60 $455,
    $550 (CAC) $350,
    $420 (CAC) $350** (P), $350** (N) $430 --- $800 ---

  • seatedlib3991seatedlib3991 Posts: 1,389 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @logger7 . You are free to use any guide you want but i have collected Seated coins for more than 35 years. I would guess that the prices listed have about a 1 chance in 5 of being relevant. james

  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,216 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @seatedlib3991 said:
    @logger7 . You are free to use any guide you want but i have collected Seated coins for more than 35 years. I would guess that the prices listed have about a 1 chance in 5 of being relevant. james

    So then the question would be why hasn't Greysheet adjusted the price to the market reality? Or did the vendor not bother to send the coin into cac and it was bought as a premium example at several grade levels above GS? When rational explanations for human behavior elude us with economic decisions, there should be some explanation beyond someone who "liked" the coin.

  • ShaunBC5ShaunBC5 Posts: 1,835 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Isn’t Greysheet wholesale? Looks like it sold below retail at a public auction, right, which isn’t unreasonable at all.

  • CatbertCatbert Posts: 7,822 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 12, 2025 10:46AM

    I collect attractive seated halves. Quality pieces do not often sell at GS guide. GS guide does not include GC or Fortin auction information where additional data can be found. While the date is readily available, the pic shows a coin that is very attractive.

    My caution to you is to use the GS as a reference point, not a driver for your purchase decision. A great resource to include in making decisions or getting "comps" is to download the PCGS auction prices app where one can easily see auction data and link the the coin to see if it is comparable in quality to the one you're considering. As you know, coin quality within a grade is a spectrum.

    Seated Half Society member #38
    "Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,216 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @ShaunBC5 said:
    Isn’t Greysheet wholesale? Looks like it sold below retail at a public auction, right, which isn’t unreasonable at all.

    If you read what Greysheet says it is based on dealer to dealer transactions. Further it says that the "....coin may be raw but must adhere to the current leading standard. While the prices here represent coins at the higher end of the quality spectrum for the grade. PQ, CAC coins in early PCGS and NGC holders and plus graded coins may trade for a premium to CDN bid values...."

  • There are MANY coins that I would love to buy at Grey sheet pricing.
    I use auction results as there I can see the coin and that helps me understand either why it went for a high or low price. I have never understood why a collector thinks that a wholesale reference guide with only numbers is a good source to try to buy choice coins.
    Try buying a Chain cent at those levels. Good luck!

  • seatedlib3991seatedlib3991 Posts: 1,389 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Pretty hard to improve upon what Catbert has said. It always pays to keep in mind they call them "Price Guides", not "Price specifics". Coins simply don't fit into neat little formulas. james

  • Coins3675Coins3675 Posts: 857 ✭✭✭✭

    I guess it was for an everyman's registry set.

  • jesbrokenjesbroken Posts: 10,814 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I would feel this coin would have sold much higher were it not for all the scratches on both obverse and reverse. Minor toning very attractive, IMO.
    Jim



    When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln

    Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain

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