08 W Silver Eagle Unc. Question

[Jimmer-migration]

Hi folks! New here and I have a question. I bought some 2008 uncirculated Silver Eagles from the mint a couple years ago. Most of them came with shiny halo effect in the center of the obverse surrounding liberty. The coin on the right of my image has a very pronounced example. Any opinions?

 

 

 

[cpm9ball]

Hey, Jimmer! Welcome to our little corner of the world.

 

I think that is probably an optical illusion created by the combination of the satin finish through the plastic lens.

 

Did you check yours for the 2007 Reverse? They changed the reverse design slightly in 2008, but some of the SAE's were struck using 2007 reverse dies. Look at the "U" in UNITED. If it has a 'leg" on the right side, it is the 2008 design; if the "U" is rounded on the bottom with no leg, it is the 2007 design. The 2008 with the Reverse of 2007 is worth a pretty good premium.

 

The Mint only produced the Satin Finish SAE with the "W" mintmark (for West Point Mint) from 2006-2008, and decided to scrap the program after that.

 

Chris

[Jimmer-migration]

Thanks! Looks like a fun place to hang.

 

Yeah, I did check for that last year when I heard about it but no dice they all have the Sans U. Maybe if I glue one of my 07's to an 08? .

 

Re: Optical illusion. I don't think so. I've got a bunch of eagles and this group are the only ones that have this effect. It almost looks like the the satin finish was missed. I don't want to remove them from the plastic for obvious reasons. Since I have 5 free grades coming to me maybe I'll send one of these in for an opinion.

 

 

 

[cpm9ball]

I've got more than 2 dozen of the 2006-2008 SAE's with the satin finish, and this same "halo" appears on a number of them. It's not a Mint error if that is what you are thinking.

 

Chris

 

PS. By the way, the enlargement in your previous post reveals several nicks on the obverse. On a good day, it will only grade MS69, but more likely it will grade MS68 if there are more that I don't see. I wouldn't waste the free submission certificate on them. You can buy MS69's all day long for a song.

 

Chris

[TomB]

I think this effect is due to the strike on the coin and the configuration of the reverse design. It's not a clash, but rather how the metal flows around the reverse that gives the obverse this bloom. This is also commonly seen on Barber half dollars and if examined closely on Barber halves one can discern the reverse eagle.