MIckey wrote:

I am going through several dollars worth of Jefferson nickels and I
have found a real nice 1999 D with a frosty looking finish. It does
not have the spinning cartwheel luster of a normal coin, but wear wise
it is a high AU. No marks, just very slight wear on the high points.
No nicks, bag marks, etc. Rims are nice. Being that it is a flat
frosty looking finish and not shiny and is a D mint and not a proof,
is this what is called a Matte finish? I can see no signs of whizz
marks. Why would anyone clean a 1999D nickel anyway. The only
Jefferson I have on my long list of things to look for with a matte
finish is a 1997. The finish looks proof like. Could this be a
business strike on a proof planchet? Any input you might have on this
will be appreciated.

Bruce Hickmott, IIRC, answered a similar question a few weeks ago by
suggesting that coins with exceptional surfaces, like yours, are 'first
strikes' from fresh dies. It makes sense to me.

I've set aside for further study a 2002 Jefferson with particularly
pathetic luster, no depth on the devices, and a date that looks extra
wide, as though added with a crayon. ;-) It's likely the product of a
worn die.

Alan
'keeps the exceptional, good and bad'