NGCX Expands to Vintage Morgan and Peace Dollars
Posted on 9/28/2023
Numismatic Guaranty Company® (NGC®) is now accepting vintage Morgan and Peace Dollars from eligible submitters for its NGCX 10-point grading scale. NGCX-certified Morgan and Peace Dollars will soon be available through select retailers, offering collectors a brand-new way to showcase these classic silver coins.
Regular submissions of vintage Morgan and Peace Dollars to NGC will continue to be graded according to the 70-point Sheldon grading scale. NGCX uses an equivalent 10-point grading scale that is more intuitive to many new collectors as well as collectors of other items such as comics and cards. Read on to learn more about NGCX.
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About Morgan and Peace Dollars
Morgan Dollars have been avidly collected for many decades and continue to enjoy immense popularity, often as a symbol of the Old West and frontier expansion during the 19th century. The inaugural coins were minted in 1878, with production taking place in Philadelphia, San Francisco and Carson City. New Orleans joined in striking Morgan Dollars in 1879, while Denver's involvement was brief, spanning only one year: 1921.
After the US Mint retired the Morgan Dollar in 1921, the Peace Dollar was introduced. The design features a youthful Liberty on the obverse, wearing a radiant crown, while the reverse displays a bald eagle clutching an olive branch, symbolizing peace. Notably, the 1921 Peace Dollar had a High Relief design, characterized by raised details, which was later modified to a Low Relief design in the same year for ease of production. The Peace Dollar series continued until 1935, with various mintmarks indicating their origin: Philadelphia (no mintmark), Denver (D) and San Francisco (S).
In 2021, the US Mint launched a tribute series of Morgan and Peace Silver Dollars to mark the 100th anniversary of these coins.
About the NGCX 10-point grading scale
NGC introduced NGCX, the first 10-point grading scale for coins, in November 2022, with the goal of bringing new collectors to the hobby by offering a grading scale that is intuitive and approachable. The grades on the NGCX 10-point grading scale not only align with the grades on the industry-standard 70-point Sheldon grading scale, but also with today’s expectations for grading, and what it means to be the best. See how the grades translate below:
| Grade | Description | Sheldon Scale Equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | A pristine coin with no post-production imperfections visible at 5x magnification. | 70 |
| 9.9 | A fully struck coin with nearly imperceptible imperfections. | 69 |
| 9.8 | A very sharply struck coin with only miniscule imperfections. | 68 |
| 9.7 | A sharply struck coin with only a few imperfections. | 67 |
| 9.6 | A very well struck coin with negligible marks and hairlines. | 66 |
| 9.5 | A very well struck coin with minimal marks and hairlines. | 65 |
| 9.4 | A well struck coin with moderate marks and hairlines. | 64 |
| 9.3 | A coin with a good strike, but several obvious marks or hairlines and other miniscule imperfections. | 63 |
| 9.2 | A coin with a slightly weak or average strike that has moderate abrasions and hairlines of varying sizes. | 62 |
| 9.1 | A coin with a slightly weak or average strike that has no trace of wear, but more or larger abrasions. | 61 |
| 9 | A coin with an average strike and no trace of wear, but more marks and/or multiple large abrasions. | 60 |
| 8.8 | A coin showing slight wear on the highest points of the design. Full details visible. | 58 |
| 8.5 | A coin showing slight wear on less than 50% of the design. Full details visible. | 55 |
| 8.3 | A coin showing slight wear on more than 50% of the design. Full details except for very minor softness on the high points. | 53 |
| 8 | A coin showing slight wear on more than 50% of the design. Full details except for minor softness on the high points. | 50 |
| 7.5 | A coin with complete details, but minor wear on some of the high points. | 45 |
| 7 | A coin with complete details, but minor wear on most of the high points. | 40 |
| 6.5 | A coin with complete details, but wear on all of the high points. | 35 |
| 6 | A coin with nearly complete details, but moderate softness on the design areas. | 30 |
| 5.5 | A coin with nearly complete details, but more softness on the design areas. | 25 |
| 5 | A coin with moderate design detail, but letters and digits are sharp. | 20 |
| 4.5 | The recessed areas on this coin show slight softness, but letters and digits are sharp. | 15 |
| 4 | The recessed areas on this coin show more softness, but letters and digits are sharp. | 12 |
| 3.5 | This coin has wear throughout the design, and letters and digits show softness. | 10 |
| 3 | This coin has wear throughout the design, and letters and digits show more softness. | 8 |
| 2.5 | The peripheral letters and digits on this coin are full, and rims are sharp. | 6 |
| 2 | The peripheral letters and digits on this coin are nearly full, and rims exhibit wear. | 4 |
| 1.5 | Most letters and digits on this coin are readable, but rims are worn into the fields. | 2 and 3 |
| 1 | There will be just enough detail to identify the coin's date and type. The rims will be flat or nearly flat. | 1 |
Where to get NGCX-certified coins
Vintage Morgan and Peace Dollars join modern coins, minted from 1982 to present, that may be graded using the NGCX 10-point grading scale. NGCX-certified coins are available through select retailers; for a list of qualifying retailers, go here. At this time, NGCX is not available for regular submissions to NGC, which continue to be graded according the 70-point scale.
To learn more about NGCX, visit NGCcoin.com/X.
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