500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

Folks, I'm sure someone is knowledgeable about this...
I just bought a half-kilo Christopher Columbus pure silver coin (500 year anniversary), and it's really beautiful, front and back. A nice, proof, appearance.

Next, I slipped the plastic cover off it carefully, and that's when I saw the milling around the edge is smooth for an inch, and that's where there's an etched number (presumably the number of the issue). All well and good, so far, but there's an abrasion where there could possibly be the first digit of the number, perhaps done with abrasive cloth such as emery. If there was a digit in that location, it's abraded so much it's completely illegible. :rant:

So to my question... does this detract enormously from the coin's value? With the plastic cover, everything looks fine, and I'm very happy with its appearance. But if I ever wanted to resell it, perhaps it would lose a great value. Any opinions? Thanks!

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

Are you able to post pictures?

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

If I had that coin and question it would go back to where it came from, because the person I try to trade it off to down the road will have the same question an either balk entirely or want to discount it's value...stuff I don't want to have to mess with.

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

Sure... once home I now just took a photo:
http://www.starastronomy.net/images/scratch.jpg

Also, here's the link to the actual purchase (yes, it was $262):
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=270091490512

The Ebay pics don't do it justice... it's an absolutely beautiful coin. So my super-closeup photo shows the worst of this issue (just like HD for those newscasters! :s1: It looks terrible close up, of course. But you can see the proof finish got removed. Surely, if this had been intentional, it wouldn't have been such a broad event, scratching the adjacent area. The dealer assures me the serial number IS 282. This would normally have a much greater value (since it's a commemorative) than a similarly-sized Eagle, right?

I just love the coin, so I'd be loathe to return it (are these coins rare??). The price isn't unreasonable, given I paid just over $16/ounce. I'm inclined to think that regardless whether the damage is to be considered "significant", it may still be worth the money (even if it were to melted down one day). As a decorative talking-piece in the living room, it surely looks excellent as it is.

One more picture:
http://www.starastronomy.net/images/scratch2.jpg
I added this one, since it seems to confirm the serial number must be 282; the number is centrally-located in the smooth area of the edge. Surely a longer serial number would have been over to the right more (to the left in the coin-upside-down photo).

Thanks for any comments you have!

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

There is no mention of that damage in the auction, on top of seaming fishy I would want another or my money back

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

First off why would you pay $17 an ounce for that????

Second i dont think its that big of deal!

Third if u think it is a big deal tell the guy you want a refund since it wasent mentioned

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

You're right, I think I will be sending it back. The seller indicated he had no problem refunding the money. The damage was "mentioned" in the advert... something about a "rub" on the edge, but as you can see, that description is hardly accurate!

Thanks for your help and comments, folks!!

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

It is a very pretty coin and it's always nice to have a half kilo round but $17+ for a coin that has much more than a 'minor' abrasion on the collar isn't really worth it.
Large coins are great, I have a 10 oz kookaburra that I love to spin around on the kitchen table. The amount of time it spins/wobbles for and the noise it makes is amazing.

Are you going to lose the shipping? I would contest that since the coin was pretty misrepresented.

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

Yeah, I'll lose the shipping, but I'm more concerned about just getting the cash back. If I see this guy putting the coin on Ebay again, I could warn potential bidders about the damage on the edge!! The coin's on its way back to the dealer. He grumbled about the effort and wasted time, and that I'd paid a lot less than I'd pay retail. I did point out that on Ebay I expect to pay less than retail! :D

You spin the kookaburra on the table? I guess you mean without taking it out of the plastic cover, right?? Yes, they're super-looking coins. I bought a whole set of 1-ounce ms70 kookaburras 1990->2007 on Ebay. They're very unlikely to lose value in the future, and they're really attractive in a display (and not a bad investment, of course).

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

that is a really nice looking coin but it doesn't look like its in mint condition. I think you could still sell it at a good amount though.

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

It looks like someone used a file on the edge to determine if it was solid Ag or silver plated.

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

I'm not familiar with that coin but the mark could possibly be innocent. On bullion bars, especially those from the Royal Canadian Mint, it isn't uncommon to see rather viscious filework. The reason why is because the bar has been filed down to correct silver weight.

I have a Somoan Kon Tiki commemorative coin, 5oz. It isn't proof by any stretch of the imagination and I bought it as generic bullion but it is a nice piece.

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

NOW it's finally occurred to me, that the coin could've come from a private mint, and perhaps someone was suspicious about the content! The Ebay advert never claimed it was from a "government mint."

Actually, you could get a very good assessment simply by measuring the volume (displacement in water, for instance), and the weight, to get the density (and thereby calculate whether it's silver or not!).

Look at this one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=110099381783
Also a Columbus, but it states plainly in the advert that it's from a private mint! I must admit, that put me off completely when I saw it.

Stick with APMEX, eh? :banana:

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

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Hey--if you bought it for a silver content investment--then you got taken at that price. If you wanted it for a collection only then you got taken on that too. It would only sell for the silver content when the time came. There is very little market for collectors of silver rounds of the 16 oz variety. I would return it ASAP.

:-)

Re: 500 Gm Columbus Coin Edge Scratched
 

If the guy doesn't want to get returns he should do a better job of documenting damages to the items he is offering for sale. I'm more of the opinion that you can never provide to much information in your ebay auctions.
I have been known to take it out of the plastic cover occasionally when I spin it around, I bought it for spot price and it's not a perfect coin by any means so I don't really care. A 10 oz coin spinning around looks absolutely amazing. I've got a few numismatistic rarities that I never touch but for the most part I'm far to much of a handler to collect rare coins.

I have some of the kookaburras from various years, I usually pick them up when I see them within range of spot on ebay or some such place.

My personal bend is for Olympic coins, there have been so many different ones released (US, IOC, and pretty much every country that has hosted them). My favorites are the 2004 ones Greece released. Of course that may just be my heritage kicking in too.