Rare New England Coin sells for $350,000

I am very surprised that a coin in such poor condition made that sort of money...I am also going to venture that coin has been a metal detecting find at some point in its recent history....
 
I am very surprised that a coin in such poor condition made that sort of money...I am also going to venture that coin has been a metal detecting find at some point in its recent history....

Pete,
At one of the links to the story (not the one I provided) there is a second photo of that same coin in a grading slab by NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation). The grade assigned is MS-61, one of the lower grades of Uncirculated for U.S. coins. Seems strange or unbelievable for a coin that lacks much detail, until you consider that we did not have a U.S. Mint until the late 1700’s. This coin was a colonial New England strike and from a crude minting process. One article said that this coin is considered the finest example of a few dozen of this type, known to exist. Here is a link to photos of the slabbed, graded shilling - https://www.greysheet.com/news/stor...rly-american-coins-discovered-in-uk-sweet-tin

So, no, I don’t think that it was found with a metal detector due to its appearance.
 
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Pete,
At one of the links to the story (not the one I provided) there is a second photo of that same coin in a grading slab by NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation). The grade assigned is MS-61, one of the lower grades of Uncirculated for U.S. coins. Seems strange or unbelievable for a coin that lacks much detail, until you consider that we did not have a U.S. Mint until the late 1700’s. This coin was a colonial New England strike and from a crude minting process. One article said that this coin is considered the finest example of a few dozen of this type, know to exist. Here is a link to photos of the slabbed, graded shilling - https://www.greysheet.com/news/stor...rly-american-coins-discovered-in-uk-sweet-tin

So, no, I don’t think that it was found with a metal detector due to its appearance.

Thanks for that, looking at the original pics I presumed much of the detail of the coin had been lost, but from reading your link it seems the coin had very little detail in the first place, just those rudimentary stampings...

Coins of that period and a little later, taking the form of almost blank silver disks and silver disks over stamped with a few rudimentary characters, are not uncommon metal detecting finds over here, and are usually treated as near scrap! I will certainly pay more attention to them in the future...
 
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