8/29/25 Report - How to Begin Checking Your Finds for Valuable Coin Errors and Varieties. Tips and References. Peak Hurricane Season.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

I received the email below and accompanying photos from Mark G.

I have been holding off submitting this content until I have some more examples of modern coin errors however your 8/27 post is a good segway.

I have started to look at my coins more closely lately and now it has turned into an obsession with many more coins to go through. So far I have found 3 coins I think have various errors that are in various condition. How rare they are is important as well as their condition. Actually I lied I have 4 examples which are also lessons in scarcity and rarity which I believe go hand in hand.

First is my 1961 Nickel strike error (I am still learning types of errors) this appears as deformed letters in the P & L of Pluribus and shadows of letters beneath the letters in “five Cents”. This is a detected coin I cleaned hard so condition is poor the value will have to rely on the rarity of the error.

Second is my 1983 penny with a cracked die marking (above). This happens when a die cracks from use and can leave raised marks that look like scratches but are not. This coin is in circulated condition I found it going through my pocket pennies looking for copper pennies 1882 and below. Cracked die is not rare I believe value will be based on severity of the error and circulated condition which by themselves is not rare.

Third as I am getting into this I am learning that rarity is actually the culmination of severity of error and condition as scored (on a scale of 1 to 70). Higher the score the more valuable because this translates into rarity. Example: My 8 Reale that I found badly worn with pieces missing barely able to make out the shield was scored a “4” which basically makes it barely worth the silver in it. My next example is my 1992 sealed certified uncirculated coin set which could possibly score in the high 60’s. My aunt used to buy and give to us for Birthday or Christmas gifts, I also have a 1992 proof set which is as good as it gets, no errors. When I realized I had these I started to look at them. I noticed right away what looks like a planchet error on the penny. Any error on an uncirculated coin is rare especially one which is packaged and certified at the mint.

Fourth is a fun one some of you might have heard of, the new quarter specifically the Edith Kanaka’Ole quarter has die errors in the first letters KANAKA. I found 3 just looking through a few quarters so this is not going to be rare.

Stay tuned my mom has my father's collection of 1943 steel pennies she agreed to let me go through, that should be interesting to see what he collected, he did not have the internet or YouTube back then.  

 

Thank You

Mark G.

Thanks for sharing your experience checking for modern coin errors Mark.  I recommend that every detectorist look into modern coin errors and varieties.  It might not be for everybody, but every detectorist should be somewhat informed on coin varieties and errors.  You don't want to let a valuable coin pass through your fingers just because you had no idea.  Even if you don't get into it heavily you should be able to spot the most obvious examples with no problem and know enough how to check into others.  Not only do you want to be alert to the errors and varieties of varieties of modern U.S. coins that you will undoubtedly see, but when you learn about coin errors you will also learn a little something that applies to other old coins including Spanish cobs which are also created by being struck by a die even if by hared rather than a mechanized process.  There will still be some similarities.  

Unfortunately, the checking for coin errors and varieties requires a lot of study, but with a little study you can learn to identify some of the more obvious errors and become aware enough to effectively investigate those that are less obvious.

I put the 1983 cent at the top of this post simply because it shows a die crack that you will see on many pennies.   I'm talking about the small crack running from the bottom corner of the steps to the edge of the coin.  That is extremely common, but by itself not worth anything.  There also appears to be another longer extended die crack.  If die cracks run from one edge of a coin to another, they are more interesting.  Without looking more closely to see its extent and if it might be a scratch or something instead of a die crack, I'm not as sure about that one even though it seems to be the results of a die crack.

A scratch will under magnification will show a depression or trench in the metal as well as raised metal on each side of the depression from the displaced metal.  A die crack error, on the other hand will be raised on the coin because of the metal flowing into the crack in the die on striking.  It is necessary to inspect the area very carefully under magnification and with good lighting.  It is tedious but can be rewarding.  Of course, valuable errors or coin varieties are not common, so it normally takes a lot of looking to find a valuable one.

I've actually learned more about die crack errors than many of the other types of errors because I've found some decent examples of my own, one of which is listed in a catalog of coin errors  See The Treasure Beaches Report Direct From Florida's Treasure Coast.: 12/13/19 Report - Looking More Closely At Your Coin Finds For Fun and Profit. Coin Chips and Cracks. Surf's Up.

Fortunately, we have access to good research tools on the internet these days.  I'd recommend going to coincomunity.com and then going to the U.S. modern errors and varieties forum if you want to learn to identify possibly valuable coin errors and varieties.   You can post your own examples and questions and get expert opinions.  You'll see many examples by people that post pictures of suspected errors or varieties to receive opinions about their coin.  Reading those forums is a great way to learn, and it gives you access to experts that will tell you what you actually have.  You'll notice that many of the suspected error coins are actually PMDs, which stands for post mint damage.  PMDs are not worth anything.

I've been mentioning coin errors and varieties, but haven't defined a variety.

A variety is a coin that has characteristics specific to the die pair that struck it. Most collectible varieties can thus be traced to a set of dies.

There seems to be some confusion as to exactly what constitutes a variety. In United States numismatics, a variety may be defined as a die or die pairing that offers some distinctive feature not a normal part of the design. For early U. S. coins, those made before the introduction of the reducing lathe in 1836, every die required extensive hand punching of letters, numerals and other small features. Therefore, each and every die was distinctive, and each die pairing constitutes a variety. Thus, all coins from this period are of some identifiable variety, and each die pairing may be identified by number under NGC's VarietyPlus service...

For more see  What is a Variety? | NGC.

One of the ore common varieites is the large and small date 1982 cent.

Here is the difference.

The small date variety is rare and can sell for big money.  The large date in great condition can sell for more than face value but not a lot.

That is just an example of one variety.  It is not a mint error, but a variety produced by different die pairings.

Here is the link for more about the large and small date variety.

Small Date vs. Large Date Penny Differences & Values (Including The Rare 1982-D Small Date Penny Worth More Than $10,000!) | U.S. Coins Guide

Collecting coin errors and varieties requires a lot of time and study, but even if you don't get into it heavily, I think every detectorist should have some familiarity, and in my opinion the best way to do that is by reading through the coincommunity forum.  Not only will you learn about genuine errors and varieties, but you'll also quickly learn about the most common mistakes that beginners normally make.  

Here is another great site for finding information and photos for learning about error coins.

Error Coin Price Guide with Mint Error Photo Descriptions | CoinNews

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We are getting into the peak of hurricane season.  As you can see from the following chart, we are right around the peak hurricane season.  Nothing so far.

Source: nhc.noaa.gov.

Soi, there is one area to watch for now.  Still a week or so out.

Surf Chart for Fort Pierce Inlet Area from Surfguru.com.

Wow.  Really small surf for this time of year.

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A few of my thoughts on the recent tragedy in Minneapolis that is so much in the media.

After the Minneapolis shooting, there has been a lot of talk about prayer in the media.  There are many who seem to think prayer doesn't work.  They seem to confuse God with Santa Claus.  They seem to think if you've been good, and of course they think they've been very good, they should get whatever they want.  That seems kind of juvenile to me.  They blame God for killings even though God clearly told us not to kill.  They seem to think that this earth is supposed to be heaven even though they do not believe in it or act like it is heaven.  God could have prevented the killings easily by not giving man freedom of will and choice, but with choice, men choose evil over good.  Can't blame God for that, other than for giving you the freedom to choose.  Adam and Eve chose wrongly and so do we.

You might also want to check out Why Does God Allow Suffering?

Good seeking,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

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