| Grade |
Description |
| aG-3 |
About good
This is a very heavily worn coin with portions of the
lettering, date and legends being worn smooth and the date
may be barely readable. |
| G-4 |
Good
This is a heavily worn piece with all major designs visible,
though in little more than outline shapes with very little
central detail. There may be faintness in some areas, but
all lettering should be readable. |
| VG-8 |
Very Good
This is a well worn piece with most of the larger details of
the designs being worn nearly smooth. |
| VG-10 |
Very Good Plus |
| F-12 |
Fine
There is moderate to considerable even wear
and although the original designs are recognizable and all
lettering visible, they have some weaknesses and lack
details. |
| F-15 |
Fine Plus |
| VF-20 |
Very Fine
There is moderate wear on all of the high parts of the coin
and the designs and lettering have lost much of their
sharpness. The original mint lustre is virtually gone. |
| VF-30 |
Very Fine Plus
There is a light even wear on all but the most protected
surfaces, and the details on the high points are worn,
though there is still some sharpness to the major design
features and lettering. Traces of original mint lustre
remain in the most protected areas. |
| EF-40 |
Extremely Fine
There is light wear on the high points of the designs, but
there is still an excellent overall sharpness. Considerable
mint lustre will still show in the protected areas. |
| EF-45 |
Choice Extremely Fine
There is a very light overall wear on the coin’s
higher points, though all of the design details are very
sharp. Mint lustre is still prominent on many areas of the
coin’s surface, though mainly in protected areas. |
| AU-50 |
About Uncirculated
There are traces of wear on most of the higher areas of the
designs and considerable disruption is seen in the larger
fields. At least half of the original mint lustre is present. |
| AU-55 |
Choice About Uncirculated
There are only small traces of wear visible on the highest
points of the coin. Wear often occurs in different spots on
different designs, and the larger fields will show some
surface disruptions, however much of the original lustre is
intact. |
| AU-58 |
Very Choice About Uncirculated
There are only the slightest traces of
wear visible on the highest points of the coin, frequently,
they are little more than lustre breaks. A light halo of
hairlining might be visible as the coin is rotated in the
light, and there may be a few rubs in the larger fields. |
| MS-60 |
Typical Mintstate The
surfaces of an MS-60 coin will often have what is often
described as a "baggy" look, with a numerous
"bag marks" or "hits" of varying sizes
depending on the hardness of the metal. And, while it is
usual to expect an MS-60 to look a bit beat-up, if any of
the hits are abnormally large or deep, they need to be
described separately. The strike may be soft or weak, and
the lustre may be impaired by a dullness from over dipping
and be much less than expected on a new coin of its type.
There is, however, no wear on the surfaces of the coin. |
| MS-61 |
Typical Mintstate |
| MS-62 |
Select Mintstate |
| MS-63 |
Choice Mintstate
Generally speaking, this can be thought
of as a nice example of Mintstate coin which does not meet
the exacting quality requirements of a Gem Mintstate coin.
An MS-63 coin will be an attractive and quite typical
example of a "new" coin of its type with a strike
that is typical for the series. There will be a number of
surface marks, but not too many, too large nor too awkwardly
placed so as to be a distraction. And, while the lustre is
usually attractive, it may be somewhat subdued or there may
be some dull areas. Frequently, an MS-63 coin is an MS-65
coin that has a slight deficiency such as one too many hits.
Also very often, one of the grading factors will be of a
high quality not normally seen at this grade and will
compensate for a weaker factor, such as superb lustre
balancing a weak strike, or diminished lustre being
propped-up by near flawless surfaces. |
| MS-64 |
Very Choice Mintstate |
| MS-65 |
Gem Mintstate
There is a definite look of quality to an MS-65 coin that
easily distinguishes it from lower grades of Mintstate. On
initial examination, with the naked eye, the piece will
appear nearly perfect. A more detailed examination will
uncover minor flaws. The strike will be no less than that
typically seen for the series, and the surfaces will have
only slight marks that will not distract from the overall
appeal of the coin. The lustre will normally be better than
that usually seen on Mintstate coins of its type. It is not
unusual that one of these factors will be well above the
required level and will compensate for another factor which
is a bit below standard. Virtually flawless surfaces may,
for example make up for subdued lustre or a slightly weak
strike. |
| MS-66 |
Gem Mintstate |
| MS-67 |
Superb Mintstate
Pieces of this quality will immediately catch the
experienced eye and will appear as perfect coins to most
other graders. They are distinguished by their full (or very
nearly full) strike, superb, virtually flawless surfaces and
superb lustre. If there are any shortcomings or detractions,
they are not initially obvious, but will be discovered only
after extensive study under magnification. These are
exceptional pieces, rarely seen. |
| MS-68 |
Superb Mintstate |
| MS-69 |
Superb Mintstate |
| MS-70 |
Perfect Mintstate (never
used) |
| |
Copyrights to the
information in this Grading Guide are the property of the
Canadian Coinoisseur, inc., which has granted us permission
for this use. Pictures and more
information available at :
http://www.coinoisseur.com/GradingCoins.html |
| Comments |
| Colour |
Red : 90%
to 100% original luster and color.
Lustrous Red and Brown : about 50%
to 85% luster and color with a sheen or glow.
Red and Brown : about 50% to 85%
luster and red color.
Trace Red : 10% to 40% remaining
luster and red color.
Lustrous Brown : Toning
over luster.
Brown : Toned |
| Cameo |
What is Cameo? The
term applied to coins, usually Proofs and prooflike coins,
that have frosted devices and lettering that contrast with
the fields. Occasionally frosty coins have "cameo"
devices though they obviously do not contrast as
dramatically with the fields as the cameo devices of Proofs
do.
Cameo : Frosty raised surface.
Heavy cameo : Very frosty raised
surface.
Ultra Heavy Cameo :
Extremely frosty raised surface. |
| Altered Coin |
Lightly Cleaned
Cleaned
Harshly Cleaned
Polished
Severity of cleaning is very
important, as is eye-appeal. A coin that was lightly wiped
and has since attractively and naturally toned back will
almost always be graded. A coin that has been polished or
harshly cleaned stands little or no chance of being
certified since these comments would reduce the price
drastically.
Light Corrosion
Corrosion
Heavy Corrosion
PVC Damage
Some examples include corrosion,
porosity, and PVC that has eaten into the coin's metal.
Bent
Scratch(es)
Nick
Location of scratch(es) is
extremely important here. A half inch scratch on the reverse
of a dollar between cause the coin to be downgraded a point
or two. A minor rim nick might cause a coin to be downgraded
a point or two. A severe rim nick will cause a coin not to
be graded or get a bent comment. Obviously, the smaller the
coin is, the less severe a rim nick is allowed to be in
order for the coin to remain gradable. |
| Varieties &
other |
Varieties
Mint errors
Planchet flaw
Planchet flaw : Raised metal, missing
metal, peeling metal and annealed planchets are just a few
of the mint made flaws. Mint errors : Mule, rotated dies,
double or triple punch can be seen. The varieties that CCCS
recognize are the one listed in "Trends", the one
listed in the Charlton catalogue and a few of the recognized
unlisted ones. |
