1773 Pillar Dollar Is it Legit?

tydye · March 2, 2011 12:33PM

It weighs 26.9 grams. I do not have the 1700s Krause to check. Thanks

JamesMurray · March 2, 2011 1:32PM

Im not an expert but can't help wonder about the M in both these obverses , my pic comes from a database i use , can they both be right ? Other than that your coin is 1 gram shy but with wear and circulation could be about right , it looks fine.I wonder about the M though.

TwoKopeiki · March 2, 2011 1:43PM

Looks fine to me, Tydye. VF30ish, I'd guess.

James, in 1773 there were 2 styles - inverted mintmark / assayer and normal as pictured in Tydye's photo.

tydye · March 2, 2011 1:49PM

Thanks guys!

JamesMurray · March 2, 2011 1:55PM

<< <i>Looks fine to me, Tydye. VF30ish, I'd guess.

James, in 1773 there were 2 styles - inverted mintmark / assayer and normal as pictured in Tydye's photo. >>

Thanks Twokobeiki , thats a good thing to know

TwoKopeiki · March 2, 2011 2:59PM

mrpotatoheadd · March 2, 2011 3:07PM

I believe the inverted variety refers to the order of the initials as you read them ("FM" vs. "MF"), not their orientation with relation to the rim. Here is an inverted variety:

OchoReales · March 2, 2011 8:49PM

Your coin is real. No qualms about it here!

lordmarcovan · March 2, 2011 9:23PM

I'd weigh in and mention that it looked fine to me, also, but once TwoKopeiki and OchoReales joined this thread, my opinion became very redundant. Those would be the "go to" guys on Spanish colonial stuff, if I was askin'. Since they liked it, you're good!

tydye · March 2, 2011 9:43PM

Cool! Thanks everyone! Picked it up for $40 yesterday at the farmers market. I now have 2 of these coins. My other one is a 1793 but in a much nicer grade. They are cool coins that I do not come across often

TwoKopeiki · March 2, 2011 11:18PM

<< <i>I believe the inverted variety refers to the order of the initials as you read them ("FM" vs. "MF"), not their orientation with relation to the rim. Here is an inverted variety.
>>

From what I've seen in the reference guides and on-line both 1772 and 1773 are catalogued as "inverted assayer / mint mark". In the case of 1772 MF it's usually listed as "Inverted, MF".

PCGS lists them as:

670015 1772-Mo MF 8 R Inverted
670105 1772-Mo FM 8 R Inverted FM
670126 1773-Mo FM 8 R Inverted

NGC went a different route and doesn't mention the change in orientation. Instead for the switch in 1773 they cite Krause #:

1772MO FM 8R
1772MO MF 8R
1773MO FM 8R KM-106.1
1773MO FM 8R KM-106.2

If I had to name that 1772, I would call it "Inverted Mint Mark and double Inverted Assayer". That's probably the reason why I'm not in charge of cataloguing anything.

1773 Pillar Dollar Is it Legit?

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