Tag Archives: toning

Double checking double mint sets

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This 1956 “original” double mint set features 22 coins, rather than 18, in the wrong packaging.

This is how it should look:

Sometimes the seller offers a partial rather than complete set, as in the example below:

The seller is being accurate that this is not a complete 1952 double mint set. He doesn’t say how many coins are included. He repeats the “P” in the headline and description. But he shows two photos of the same 10-coin partial set, perhaps indicating a 20-coin partial set, and novice bidders might know make the connection that the “D” (Denver) and “S” (San Francisco) sets are missing.

I seldom bid on partial sets because that indicates to me that the best coins are missing, submitted for holdering or broken up and sold individually.

These sets (produced between 1947-58) are highly desired because of the resultant toning from the cardboard and paper packaging. Here’s a rainbow example from one of my 1952 double mint sets, a beautiful MS66 “S” mint showcasing the vibrant rainbow hues:

Unscrupulous sellers sometimes purchase partial mint sets to replace coins in their original boards and then resell the set as “original.”

The difficulty in identifying partial and complete sets concerns how some sets feature 18 coins (1956), and others 22 coins (1955), 28 coins (1947-49) and 30 coins (1951-1954, 1957-58).

Each year has a distinct cardboard and paper holder. It’s important to identify these because unethical sellers sometimes assemble fake double mint sets and put them in the wrong packaging. This set is suspicious because it lacks the pink paper that covers the cardboard holder:

You don’t have to memorize the specific years and packaging. You can go to a reputable seller, like APMEX, and view the original packaging. Then compare with the lot being offered at auction.

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Crossover Old PCI Rainbowed Eagles Going Terminal

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Brilliantly toned American Silver Eagles in old PCI holders are among the most beautiful–stunning–toned coins. But when crossed over to PCGS, keep an eye on that toning. It may go terminal.




When you cross over, the coin interacts with the Gold Shield emblem. An olive green starts to dominate, usually from the corners.

At one time I had almost 100 of marvelously toned Silver Eagles crossed over to PCGS from old green PCI holders known for their rainbow hues, interacting with the chemicals in the label. Coin World featured my collection. Some had the Gold Shield; others, not. Ones without the Gold Shield kept their color. Not so with the others.

You can see the deterioration already in this coin, posted on Facebook.


Here’s another example:

Here’s what the old green PCI holder looks like:

Some of my PCI-crossed over Silver Eagles even took the pattern seemingly of the American flag:

Many slowly started to develop an olive green unsightly tone.

Here’s an example of that color:

Here’s a current offering from eBay that is beginning to go terminal. How can we tell? This has PCGS TrueView so we can see the toning of the coin as originally submitted.

Now let’s go to the PCGS cert and see the TrueView:

My advice is to keep an eye on your crossed over Eagles, checking them every month for that olive green creep. Of the 100 I previously owned, only 9 are close to their original color, and most of these in holders without the PCGS Gold Shield.

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Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups and other social media. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.