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==[[American Numismatic Association]] scale==

As the hobby of numismatics evolved, the need arose for a more concrete grading system. In 1978, the American Numismatic Association published the ''Official A.N.A. Grading System for United States Coins''.<ref>https://www.pcgs.com/news/how-united-states-coins-are-graded</ref> It established grading tiers of, in descending order of preservation, ''Mint State'', ''About Uncirculated'', ''Extremely Fine'', ''Very Fine'', ''Fine'', ''Very Good'', ''Good'' and ''About Good''. Most numismatists, as well as third-party grading services, also use two other descriptors for the lowest grades, ''Fair'' and ''Poor''. The higher tiers on this scale each encompass two or more "sub-grades" denoted by the appending of the corresponding Sheldon scale number, such as ''Very Fine-20'' or ''Very Fine-30''. This allows for the recognition of coins which exceed the standard for a given tier, but do not meet the criteria for the next. Grades are commonly abbreviated, and not all numismatists use the numerical grades, so a grade of ''Fine-12'' may be rendered as ''Fine'', ''F-12'', ''12'' or simply ''F''.

===Mint State (MS-60 through MS-70)===
The ''Mint State'' grades (MS) feature the most subdivisions of any tier in the grading scale, with every numerical grade from 60 to 70 in use. All Mint State coins, whether MS-60 or MS-70, have absolutely no trace of wear and possess full, uninterrupted mint luster. However, flaws such as contact marks, bag marks, weak strikes, blemishes and unattractive toning, while not signs of circulation, are all grounds to assign a coin a lower MS grade. Contact marks occur when the edge of one coin collides with another, as commonly occurs during the minting and distribution process. Particularly deep contact marks are sometimes referred to colloquially as '''zippers''', owing to the reeded edge impression resembling a zipper. Bag marks result from coins rubbing or jostling together while in transit. An MS-70 coin is fully struck and has no flaws even under 5× magnification, while an MS-60 coin may be weakly struck and riddled with contact marks and blemishes.

''Choice'' and ''Gem'' are older terms still sometimes used to describe MS-63 and MS-65 coins, respectively. ''Brilliant Uncirculated'' (BU) is another synonym for Mint State.

===About Uncirculated (AU-50; AU-53; AU-55; AU-58)===
A coin in ''About Uncirculated'' condition has, as the name suggests, been subject to very light wear from circulation: it is nearly, but not quite, uncirculated. The highest points of relief on the coin's design are the first to show wear, and these points will have some rub on AU-graded coins. Because the level of wear is so light and difficult to differentiate, mint luster is an important consideration for the AU grades, with AU-58 coins retaining full or nearly full luster and AU-50 coins having it only in more protected, lower-relief areas of the design. Design elements are finely detailed, but some minute details on the highest points of relief may have been worn away, particularly on AU-50 pieces.

===Extremely Fine (EF-40; EF-45; also XF-40; XF-45)===
An ''Extremely Fine'' coin (EF or XF; both abbreviations are common) possesses strong detail and light even wear overall. Traces of mint luster may still remain in highly protected areas of the design, such as between letters and the rim. All major design elements are still present and bear strong details. Finer details have been worn away.

===Very Fine (VF-20; VF-25; VF-30; VF-35)===
Light to moderate even wear characterizes coins graded ''Very Fine''. Major design elements retain about two-thirds to three-fourths of their details. Lettering is still bold. Rims are strong, but dentils (on issues with rim dentils) may begin to flatten.

===Fine (F-12; F-15)===
A coin in the grade of ''Fine'' has about half of its detail remaining. Major design elements have been noticeably flattened and are mostly without their more intricate details. Peripheral devices such as stars are still well-defined, but may be flat. Rim dentils are starting to show obvious weakness; they may be merging together.

===Very Good (VG-8; VG-10)===
A ''Very Good'' coin has been quite heavily worn, and retains less than half of its detail. Major design elements are still strongly outlined, but finer details are worn flat or missing. Rims are still full and rather strong.

===Good (G-4; G-6)===
A ''Good'' coin could be described as "well-circulated." At this level of preservation, the major design elements persist in full outline only. Inner details are mostly gone. Rims may be full all the way around the coin, but on certain issues, they may be incomplete.

===About Good (AG-3)===
Coins in the ''About Good'' grade tier are heavily worn, to the point where the major design elements may be weakly or incompletely outlined. Rims are incomplete and may have begun to wear into the peripheral design elements such as stars, the motto, or the date.

''Average circulated'', when seen in coin listings or advertisements, can refer to coins in the About Good grade range, particularly for older American series like the [[Barber coinage]] or [[United States Seated Liberty coinage|Seated Liberty coins]], which exist predominantly in well-worn grades today.

===Fair (FA-2 or FR-2)===
A coin in ''Fair'' condition is a very heavily worn piece. The main design elements may have worn into the field of the coin, the rim, or both. The rims are worn well into peripheral elements such as the date, motto, legend, and stars.

===Poor (PO-1)===
''Poor'' coins are about as heavily worn as possible while still being identifiable as to type, date and mint. A coin which has been so heavily worn as to leave the date, mint or major variety ambiguous is ungradable.

Some numismatists actively pursue coins from the lowest tiers of the grading scale and assemble so-called "lowball" sets. Depending on the series, this can prove to be a challenge. [[Standing Liberty quarter|Standing Liberty quarters]] and [[Buffalo nickel|Buffalo nickels]], for instance, usually become dateless from circulation wear long before reaching a PO-1 grade, while a large number of low-grade silver coins were melted as bullion in the silver booms of [[Silver_as_an_investment#1979%E2%80%931980|1980]] and 2010.


==Certification services==
==Certification services==

Revision as of 02:15, 11 September 2020

Coin grading[1] is the process of determining the grade or condition of a coin, one of the key factors in determining its value. A coin's grade is generally determined by five criteria: strike, preservation, luster, color, and attractiveness. Several grading systems have been developed. Certification services professionally grade coins for tiered fees.

Overview

A "grade" measures a coin's appearance. There are generally five main components which determine a coin's grade: strike, surface preservation, luster, coloration and eye appeal. Grading is subjective and even experts can disagree about the grade of a given coin.[2][1]

History

U.S. coin grading has evolved over the years to a system of finer and finer grade distinctions. Originally, there were only two grades, new and used. This changed to the letter grading system beginning with the lowest grade – Basal State (also Poor (PO)), then continuing Fair (Fr), About or Almost Good (AG), Good (G), Very Good (VG), Fine (F), Very Fine (VF), Extremely Fine (EF), Almost or About Uncirculated (AU), Uncirculated (Unc) and up to Brilliant Uncirculated (BU). Gem Uncirculated was roughly equivalent in usage to BU at that time. Numerical grades from 1 to 70 now accompany the verbal grades.[3][4][5][6]

Systems

Early grading systems

The quality of all coins is not equal and collectors felt the necessity of defining the quality of the coins in order to assess their value. Rim damage, nicks, polishing, cleaning, scratches and other forms of wear are considered factors in grading a coin. Whether or not a coin shows evidence of having been mounted in jewelry also affects its grade.

In the early years of coin collecting, three general terms were used to grade coins:

  • good - when circulation had worn the surface of the coin, but major details were still visible.
  • fine - when features were less worn and a bit of mint luster showed on the surface. Most major and minor detail visible
  • uncirculated - when the features of the coin were sharp and the luster approaching the state of a new coin at the mint.[7]

Sheldon grading system

Main article: Sheldon coin grading scale

As the collector market for coins grew rapidly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it became apparent that a more precise grading standard was needed. Some coins were simply more fine than others, and some uncirculated coins showed more luster and far fewer marks than others. Terms like "gem uncirculated" and "very fine" began to see use, as more precise grading descriptions allowed for more precise pricing for the booming collector market.

In 1948, well-known numismatist Dr. William Herbert Sheldon attempted to standardize coin grading by proposing what is now known as the Sheldon Scale. Sheldon's 1 to 70 grading scale[clarify], included in his book Penny Whimsy, was originally devised for U.S. large cents but it is now applied to all series.[8]

European grading system

European countries use various, roughly equivalent, grading systems. The main features of their systems are presented in the following table:[9]

European Grading System
Adjective Design remaining United
Kingdom 		France Spain Italy German-speaking Scandinavia Netherlands Portugal
Good (G-4) 10% G AB (Assez Beau) RC M GE (Gut erhalten) 2 G (Goed) REG
Very Good (VG-8) 25% VG B (Beau) BC B (Bello) SGE (Sehr gut erhalten) 1- ZG (Zeer Goed) MREG
Fine (F-12) 50% F TB (Très Beau) BC+ MB (Molto Bello) S (Schön) 1 Fr (Fraai) BC
Very Fine (VF-20) 75% VF TTB (Très Très Beau) MBC BB (Bellissimo) SS (Sehr schön) 1+ ZF (Zeer Fraai) MBC
Extremely Fine (EF-40, or XF-40) 90% EF/XF SUP (Superbe) EBC SPL (Splendido) VZ (Vorzüglich) 01 Pr. (Prachtig) Bela
About Uncirculated (AU-50) 95% + some luster UNC No use No use MSPL (MoltoSplendido) UNZ− (Fast unzirkuliert) 0-01 No use No use
Mint State (MS-60 to 64) 100% + luster BU SPL (Splendide) SC SPL/FDC UNZ (Unzirkuliert) 0 FDC (Fleur de Coin) Soberba
Mint State (MS-65 to 70) 100% + full luster FDC FDC (Fleur de Coin) FDC FDC (Fior di Conio) STGL (Stempelglanz) 0 FDC FDC (Flor de Cunho)

American Numismatic Association scale

As the hobby of numismatics evolved, the need arose for a more concrete grading system. In 1978, the American Numismatic Association published the Official A.N.A. Grading System for United States Coins.[10] It established grading tiers of, in descending order of preservation, Mint State, About Uncirculated, Extremely Fine, Very Fine, Fine, Very Good, Good and About Good. Most numismatists, as well as third-party grading services, also use two other descriptors for the lowest grades, Fair and Poor. The higher tiers on this scale each encompass two or more "sub-grades" denoted by the appending of the corresponding Sheldon scale number, such as Very Fine-20 or Very Fine-30. This allows for the recognition of coins which exceed the standard for a given tier, but do not meet the criteria for the next. Grades are commonly abbreviated, and not all numismatists use the numerical grades, so a grade of Fine-12 may be rendered as Fine, F-12, 12 or simply F.

Mint State (MS-60 through MS-70)

The Mint State grades (MS) feature the most subdivisions of any tier in the grading scale, with every numerical grade from 60 to 70 in use. All Mint State coins, whether MS-60 or MS-70, have absolutely no trace of wear and possess full, uninterrupted mint luster. However, flaws such as contact marks, bag marks, weak strikes, blemishes and unattractive toning, while not signs of circulation, are all grounds to assign a coin a lower MS grade. Contact marks occur when the edge of one coin collides with another, as commonly occurs during the minting and distribution process. Particularly deep contact marks are sometimes referred to colloquially as zippers, owing to the reeded edge impression resembling a zipper. Bag marks result from coins rubbing or jostling together while in transit. An MS-70 coin is fully struck and has no flaws even under 5× magnification, while an MS-60 coin may be weakly struck and riddled with contact marks and blemishes.

Choice and Gem are older terms still sometimes used to describe MS-63 and MS-65 coins, respectively. Brilliant Uncirculated (BU) is another synonym for Mint State.

About Uncirculated (AU-50; AU-53; AU-55; AU-58)

A coin in About Uncirculated condition has, as the name suggests, been subject to very light wear from circulation: it is nearly, but not quite, uncirculated. The highest points of relief on the coin's design are the first to show wear, and these points will have some rub on AU-graded coins. Because the level of wear is so light and difficult to differentiate, mint luster is an important consideration for the AU grades, with AU-58 coins retaining full or nearly full luster and AU-50 coins having it only in more protected, lower-relief areas of the design. Design elements are finely detailed, but some minute details on the highest points of relief may have been worn away, particularly on AU-50 pieces.

Extremely Fine (EF-40; EF-45; also XF-40; XF-45)

An Extremely Fine coin (EF or XF; both abbreviations are common) possesses strong detail and light even wear overall. Traces of mint luster may still remain in highly protected areas of the design, such as between letters and the rim. All major design elements are still present and bear strong details. Finer details have been worn away.

Very Fine (VF-20; VF-25; VF-30; VF-35)

Light to moderate even wear characterizes coins graded Very Fine. Major design elements retain about two-thirds to three-fourths of their details. Lettering is still bold. Rims are strong, but dentils (on issues with rim dentils) may begin to flatten.

Fine (F-12; F-15)

A coin in the grade of Fine has about half of its detail remaining. Major design elements have been noticeably flattened and are mostly without their more intricate details. Peripheral devices such as stars are still well-defined, but may be flat. Rim dentils are starting to show obvious weakness; they may be merging together.

Very Good (VG-8; VG-10)

A Very Good coin has been quite heavily worn, and retains less than half of its detail. Major design elements are still strongly outlined, but finer details are worn flat or missing. Rims are still full and rather strong.

Good (G-4; G-6)

A Good coin could be described as "well-circulated." At this level of preservation, the major design elements persist in full outline only. Inner details are mostly gone. Rims may be full all the way around the coin, but on certain issues, they may be incomplete.

About Good (AG-3)

Coins in the About Good grade tier are heavily worn, to the point where the major design elements may be weakly or incompletely outlined. Rims are incomplete and may have begun to wear into the peripheral design elements such as stars, the motto, or the date.

Average circulated, when seen in coin listings or advertisements, can refer to coins in the About Good grade range, particularly for older American series like the Barber coinage or Seated Liberty coins, which exist predominantly in well-worn grades today.

Fair (FA-2 or FR-2)

A coin in Fair condition is a very heavily worn piece. The main design elements may have worn into the field of the coin, the rim, or both. The rims are worn well into peripheral elements such as the date, motto, legend, and stars.

Poor (PO-1)

Poor coins are about as heavily worn as possible while still being identifiable as to type, date and mint. A coin which has been so heavily worn as to leave the date, mint or major variety ambiguous is ungradable.

Some numismatists actively pursue coins from the lowest tiers of the grading scale and assemble so-called "lowball" sets. Depending on the series, this can prove to be a challenge. Standing Liberty quarters and Buffalo nickels, for instance, usually become dateless from circulation wear long before reaching a PO-1 grade, while a large number of low-grade silver coins were melted as bullion in the silver booms of 1980 and 2010.

Certification services

Main article: Third Party Grading

Coin certification services emerged in the 1980s as a response to the need for buyers and sellers to agree on grading.[11] For tiered fees, certification services grade, authenticate, attribute, and encapsulate coins in clear, plastic holders.[12][13] Professional Coin Grading service (PCGS), Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), Independent Coin Graders (ICG), and American Numismatic Association Certification Service (ANACS) are the most popular services, according to experts. These are the only services whose coins have a special section on eBay, the largest rare coin marketplace. All four firms guarantee the grades and authenticity of their certified coins. Together they have certified over 80 million coins.[14][15][16][17]

At each of the four main grading companies, a similar process is used. Each coin is graded (on a verbal and 1 to 70 numerical scale) and authenticated by two or more graders, and then assigned a final grade by a finalizer, based in part upon the recommendations of the prior graders. Depending on the company, various descriptors may be added, such as Full Bands for Mercury dimes, Full Bell Lines (FBL) for Franklin Half Dollars, or Deep Mirror Prooflike (DMPL) for Morgan dollars, and the coin's die variety may be noted. The coin is then slabbed and returned to the customer.[18][19][20][21] In 2010, PCGS and NGC introduced "Plus" grading for high-end coins graded XF45 to MS68. A plus symbol (+) is added after the grade.[22][23]

In 2007, the Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG), a US association of rare coin dealers, released the results of a survey of major coin dealers who gave their professional opinions about 11 certification services. PCGS and NGC were rated "Superior" overall, with ANACS and ICG deemed "Good". PCI and SEGS were listed as "Poor", while called "Unacceptable" were Accugrade (ACG), Numistrust Corporation (NTC), Hallmark Coin Grading Service (HCGS), American Coin Club Grading Service (ACCGS), and Star Grading Services (SGS).[24][25][26]

Counterfeit NGC and PCGS holders have been reported, but significant measures have been taken by both services to remedy the problem, such as NGC's use of photographic verification for every coin certified and both services' employment of serial number verification and anti-counterfeiting features in their holders.[27][28][29][30]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Travers, Scott. "Introduction". coingrading.com. coingrading.com. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  2. ^ Winter, Doug (2001). "The Five Components of Coin Grading". Archived from the original on 2010-03-08. Retrieved 2010-06-06.
  3. ^ "NGC". ngccoin.com. NGC. Retrieved 2015. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  4. ^ "PCGS Coin Facts". pcgscoinfacts.com. pcgscoinfacts.com. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  5. ^ "ANACS". www.anacs.com/. ANACS. Archived from the original on 2015-03-31. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  6. ^ "ICG". icgcoin.com. ICG. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  7. ^ Androulakis, Yiannis. "Coin Grading Standards".
  8. ^ Sheldon, William H. (1990). Penny Whimsy. Sanford S. Durst. ISBN 0-942666-62-3.
  9. ^ :"Grading Standards".
  10. ^ https://www.pcgs.com/news/how-united-states-coins-are-graded
  11. ^ "Coin Grading Systems - The History of Coin Grading Scales". About.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2007. Retrieved 13 December 2009.
  12. ^ "The History of Rare Coin Grading". Austin Gold Information Network. Archived from the original on 6 September 2009. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
  13. ^ "Coin Grading Services: Who They Are and What They Do". coin-collecting-guide-for-beginners.com. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
  14. ^ "NGC". ngccoin.com. NGC. Retrieved 2015. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ "PCGS Coin Facts". pcgscoinfacts.com. pcgscoinfacts.com. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  16. ^ "ANACS". www.anacs.com/. ANACS. Archived from the original on 2015-03-31. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  17. ^ "ICG". icgcoin.com. ICG. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  18. ^ "NGC". ngccoin.com. NGC. Retrieved 2015. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  19. ^ "PCGS Coin Facts". pcgscoinfacts.com. pcgscoinfacts.com. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  20. ^ "ANACS". www.anacs.com/. ANACS. Archived from the original on 2015-03-31. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  21. ^ "ICG". icgcoin.com. ICG. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  22. ^ PCGS Secure Plus Service
  23. ^ NGC Launches Plus Designation
  24. ^ "PNG, ICTA Announce Results of 2006 Grading Services Survey". pngdealers.org. Professional Numismatists Guild. Archived from the original on 2015-09-21. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  25. ^ "NGC". ngccoin.com. NGC. Retrieved 2015. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  26. ^ "PCGS Coin Facts". pcgscoinfacts.com. pcgscoinfacts.com. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
  27. ^ "PCGS Announces". coinweek.com. Coin Week. Retrieved 2015-09-16.
  28. ^ "NGC Confirms Counterfeit Replica Coin Holders". coinnews.net. Coin News. Retrieved 2015-09-16.
  29. ^ "NGC". ngccoin.com. NGC. Retrieved 2015. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  30. ^ "PCGS Coin Facts". pcgscoinfacts.com. pcgscoinfacts.com. Retrieved 2015-09-05.
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