This guide will hopefully help you to become better at assigning grades to Morgan Silver Dollars.  I am not an expert, and this guide is by no means "the law".  I will give a rough guideline on what should and should not be present in order for a coin to qualify for a particular grade.  There are a LOT of over-graded Morgans on Ebay.  If you are a person who buys coins based on eye appeal alone and never plan to trade or sell them, this guide will mean little to you.  If however you do plan to upgrade or sell your collection in the future, these guidelines may help you make more informed purchases.  Ebay only allows 10 pictures per guide, but these should give you a good representation of each grade.  I encourage you to buy the ANA Grading Standards for US Coins 6th edition.  It covers all US issues and is a wonderful reference.

Morgan Silver Dollars 1878-1921
90% Silver content    (.77 oz. pure silver)

(AG) - About Good – Liberty’s head is outlined, but nearly all of the details are worn away.  The date and legend are readable but merge into the rim of the coin. 

Example:

(G) - Good – Heavily Worn.  Liberty’s hair is well worn with little to no detail remaining.  Coin must have a full rim on front and back to receive the grade Good. 

Example:

(VG) - Very Good - Well worn.  The overall design is weak, most details in hair are worn smooth.  Date and motto are clear and readable on front and back of coin.  ½ of eagle’s right wing will show detail, 2/3 of eagle’s left wing will show detail.  Coin must have complete rims on front and back.

Example:

(F) - Fine – Moderate wear.  Liberty’s hair line across face should be defined.  The two lower cotton leaves should be visible but lacking detail in this grade.  The cotton bolls are both flat, but there will be 2 lines in each visible.  ¾ of the eagle’s right wing and 9/10 of the left wing will show detail in this grade.

Example:

(VF) - Very Fine - Light to moderate wear of entire design, features in this grade begin to look sharp.  Hair lines on face show wear from Liberty’s forehead to her ear.  The lower cotton leaves and the tops of the cotton bolls are flat.  Eagles wings have full detail.  Eagles chest may show a few feathers. 

Example:

(XF) - Extra Fine - Light wear on highest points of the design.  Liberty’s forehead hairline will show some wear to her ear.   There may be slight flat spots on the lower cotton leaves.  While showing signs of wear, there will be feathers visible on the eagle’s chest.  The eagle’s right wing tip will also show wear. 

Example:          

The following coins Range from AU-50 to MS-67.  These are very difficult to grade without a pro to help.  All business strike Morgan Silver Dollars were placed into mint bags containing 1000 coins.  The handling of these bags caused nearly all Morgan Dollars to have contact marks.  These contact marks are not considered ‘wear’.  Also, some coins were weakly struck and may not show full detail in spots.  This also is not considered ‘wear’.  Use the following as a general guideline between AU and BU.  There is a lot of wiggle room between grades here...

(AU) - About Uncirculated – Small trace of wear is visible on high points. High points are forehead hair line to ear, edges of cotton leaves and tops of cotton bolls, and the right tip of the eagle’s wing on reverse.

Example:

(BU) - Bank/Brilliant Uncirculated - Absolutely no trace of wear, what distinguishes a MS-60 from a MS-67 is the amount of luster present on the coin and the amount, placement, and severity of bagmarks.  If the surface of the coin is dull, spotted, or weakly struck it will grade lower.  Eye appeal means a lot in these grades.  PCGS or NGC is your best bet to get an accurate representation of the grade for a particular coin. 

Examples:

(PF) -Proof -  Morgan Dollar Proof coins are generally called “Prooflike”.  They are very sharply struck coins that have highly reflective surfaces.  These coins are not terribly difficult to find, but they do cost a bit more.  If you are in the market for proof Morgan dollars, go ahead and buy PCGS or NGC certified coins.  They will certify Morgan Dollars as PL (Prooflike) or DMPL (Deep-mirror-Prooflike).  I hope to have another guide up soon to explain the characteristics of proof Morgans as this is supposed to be a simple and quick guide. 

Example of a proof Morgan:

Feel free to check out my other guides.  You may find something else that interests you.  They are all coin related.

If The Slabs Lie, Don’t Buy
Fake CC Dollars
Grading Walking Liberty Halves

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