Expert: Jim Lawniczak - 4/4/2005

Question
My father was reciently given 3 sets of coins held by a family friend to be given to 3 brothers upon their fathers death.  The sets are: 1895 morgan silver dollar proof,1893s proof,1892s proof, 1889cc proof and a 1884s proof 15 coins total. My question is how do we saftly find out thier worth and were or what is the best way to sell.

Answer
Hello, Randie, sorry, I don't think I'm the best of the experts to help you -- this is Morgan proof dollars and not my area of expertise by a long shot.  You might try another expert or go to www.ebay.com and do a search for (for example) 1895 proof Morgan and you may find people selling similar items.  This may not work for your coins, however, as your pieces appear to be so rare that it is unlikely anyone would have one to sell on eBay.  Also try www.google.com and do a similar search and you'll probably find dealer websites selling similar items.

One thing you'll notice is that condition is critical -- there can be wide variations due to condition.  You will have to find a dealer you trust to help you with condition or another possibility is to submit your items to a major grading service (PCGS, NGC come to mind) and for a fee they'll grade them for you.  Usually best to get a trusted dealer to do that.

Some advice -- under no circumstances do anything to try to improve the condition of your items -- it is almost impossible to do and you have to be a great expert to even try.  Please don't try.  Many thousands of dollars of value have gone away in "cleaning."  That would be especially true of the items you list here.

I checked my price guide and the only proof Morgan that was listed was 1895; I don't think (though I'm not sure) that the others you list come in actual proof (many Morgans are what is called "prooflike" and that usually adds value to them.

Anyway, if you really have a 1895 proof, it is worth many thousands.  There apparently was no 1895 made in Philadelphia without mint mark that year so that if you have a Morgan 1895 with no mintmark, it is either the proof or a counterfeit.  Again, a reputable honest dealer is what you need.

The other Morgans you list even if not in proof are listed in my price guide as at many thousands, so you need to safeguard those pieces and find an expert. Shop around and don't take the first one that comes to you.  You may also want to consider consigning to an auction house -- again try a google search to find one.  Get one, if you do, that has multiple experiences in selling large collections for lots of money at large events. Hope this helped, Jim Lawniczak