1909-S VDB Lincoln Wheat Cent ANACS VF30 Details Damage The Key Date

1909-S VDB  Lincoln Wheat Cent ANACS VF30 Details Damage The Key Date

This listing is for a 1909-S VDB Lincoln Wheat Cent graded by ANACS VF30 Details, Cleaned, Damaged.

The damage is a rim bruise at 9:00 on the obverse. You can see it just to the left of Liberty. The cleaning is not harsh; there are very few hair lines. The color is a little off which means it was probably chemically cleaned, perhaps over dipped or not rinsed correctly. The luster is flat and the coin has significant detail, very close to XF Detail in fact. The wheat stalks are pretty much full with all the fine lines being bold and complete. Lincoln's hair, beard and vest are all well detailed and 3 dimensional. 

Recent problem free VF20-30 have sold on eBay for $1100-$1300 in PCGS, NGC and ANACS holders as recently as January 2024. Certified VF Details coins have been selling for $800-$1100 and Raw "VF" or "VF DEtails" have all sold for $700-$1100 - all within the past 30 days.

Obviously this is THE Undisputed Key to the Lincoln Cent Series, and a coin that is always in high demand. What amazes me is how many coins I see on eBay that are selling or have recently sold raw. Of those, with my very quick, cursory look, I spotted no less than 2 obvious counterfeits with bids approaching or even exceeding $1000. I have reported fakes in the past but 99% of the time I get a report back thanking me and that it has been checked out and confirmed nothing is wrong.  

PSA: In the last 2 weeks alone, over 6 raw "VF" or "VF Details" have sold for anywhere from $800 to $1200. If you're going to buy an expensive, key date coin, unless you are 100% confident in your own ability to detect counterfeit from genuine (and keep in mind, as technology progresses, the counterfeits are getting more and more sophisticated), you would be doing yourself a disservice to buy anything other than one certified by PCGS, NGC or ANACS. Caveat Emptor.