A change in the weight specifications for U.S. gold coins in 1834 prompted a design change to distinguish the new, lower-weight half eagles from previous old-tenor pieces. Earlier half eagles had a greater intrinsic value than their face value, which led to widespread hoarding and melting. Many of the heavier-weight coins were melted and struck as 1834 Classic Head fives, which feature a new portrait of Liberty without a cap. The motto E PLURIBUS UNUM is absent from the reverse. Two date logotypes exist. Most of the 1834 Classic Head half eagles have a Plain 4 in the date, while a single, scarce variety (as offered here) displays a Crosslet 4 date.
The NGC population is 16 with 9 graded higher.
Listed at $18,000 in the NGC price guide.
Offered at $17,500
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The 1911-S Indian ten-dollar gold piece was once considered one of the rarest dates of the series in Mint State. The date boasts a low mintage of just 51,000 pieces, and the great majority of the coins were released into circulation at the time of issue. Before the discovery of a hoard of 50 pieces in Europe in the 1970s, Mint State specimens of this date were virtually unheard-of. The date began appearing in auction catalogs in the 1940s, but even great collectors like F.C.C. Boyd and King Farouk were content with specimens that graded only VF during that era. Louis Eliasberg, the “King of Coins,” settled for an XF40 example in his extraordinary collection. The situation changed radically in 1979 when Marc Emory, acting for New England Rare Coin Galleries, brokered a deal for a group of Gem Uncirculated 1911-S eagles through his contacts in Spain. The story of this remarkable find was told for the first time in the Ivy Press publication The Coinage of Augustus Saint-Gaudens. The hoard was originally the property of the American governor of the Philippines in 1911, who gave a group of 50 ten-dollar gold coins from the San Francisco Mint to a Spanish citizen who was residing in the Philippines at the time. The coins were preserved by that gentleman, who later returned to Spain, and the hoard became part of his estate when he died. The coins were retained by his family for many years until his grandson decided to sell them through a prominent coin collector from Barcelona. Marc Emory met with the collector and finalized a deal through a Swiss bank for 30 of the coins. The remainder of the hoard eventually became available, and NERCA became the conduit for their entry into the U.S. coin market. Nearly all Gem level 1911-S eagles in collector’s hands today are from this fantastic hoard.
In hand, this Gem is lighter in hue and more lustrous than seen in our images. The NGC population is only 10 with 2 graded higher.
Offered at $25,850 (Bank Wire, ACH, Delivered)
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The Carson City Mint struck a substantial mintage of 115,085 Liberty double eagles in 1874, but the survival rate for the issue is below average. In The Confident Carson City Coin Collector , Rusty Goe notes less than 2% of the reported mintage is extant today, and many of those coins were repatriated from foreign holdings in recent years. The 1874-CC is popular with branch mint type collectors, but it remains an elusive issue at the AU58 grade level, and Mint State specimens are rare. The one offered here is noticeably lighter in color and more lustrous than seen in our images.
Listed at $17,500 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $13,950
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The 1912 Saint-Gaudens double eagle claims a smallish mintage of 149,750 coins. Its certified population totals in MS62 and MS63 are relatively pedestrian — about a couple thousand each — but the issue becomes more challenging in MS64, scarce in MS65, and rare in MS66 or better. What also stands out about the 1912 is its status as the only Saint issue for the year. There are no branch mint coins to supplement the population of Philadelphia representatives. The one offered here displays clean surfaces and a delightful, satiny appearance.
The PCGS population is 42 with 18 graded higher – none finer than MS66.
Listed at $31,200 in the CDN CPG and $35,000 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $32,480
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The 1861 Liberty double eagle is one of the most popular type coins among No Motto issues, struck to the extent of more than 2.9 million coins. Prior to the discovery of the S.S. Central America and its hold of thousands of 1857-S and 1856-S double eagles, the 1861 was recognized as the most plentiful Type One issue in high grade. Nonetheless, near-Gem pieces such as this one, are conditionally scarce, and finer examples are rare.
Contrary to how the coin appears in pour images, it’s uniform in color and of the lighter yellow-gold color that shows. The PCGS population is 13 with 8 graded higher.
Listed at $44,400 in the CDN CPG and $50,000 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $44,800
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The New Orleans Mint pushed the limits of the obverse die, which shows numerous die cracks and a prominent die clash to the right of Liberty’s draped elbow. Otherwise, this gleaming, Superb Gem shows no marks or abrasions worthy of mention. It’s a brightly lustrous coin with satin-silver surfaces framed by attractive, russet-red toning at the margins. The PCGS population is only 3 with a single (MS67+) example graded higher.
Listed at $48,000 in the CDN CPG and $50,000 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $50,400
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This is the first of a brief two-year design type, and it is an important rarity in Proof format. Although the rarity has sometimes been overstated in the past, there are relatively few Proofs known. Estimates range from just 10 pieces (Walter Breen) to 12 to 15 coins (David Akers). The PCGS estimate is 10 to 15 surviving examples, which has remained unchanged for at least 15 years. These estimates further suggest that the certified population (33 coins at PCGS and NGC combined) is greatly inflated by resubmissions and crossovers. The NGC population is only 2 with 1 graded higher.
Listed at $30,500 in the NGC price guide.
Offered at $22,960
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The Philadelphia Mint struck a small production of 460 proof Seated Liberty half dollars for collectors in 1863, at the height of the Civil War. The generously frosted devices on this beauty stand out in stark contrast to the deeply mirrored fields. Better yet, the contrast is even more pronounced than is apparent in our images. Light iridescent patina in shades of olive, blue and copper, among others, graces the peripheries – more noticeably so on the obverse. This example is the only one to have received this grade and designation from PCGS with none graded higher. It also has the distinction of being the only PCGS DCAM of any grade for this date.
Listed at $47,500 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $26,320
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The 1863-S is even rarer than suggested by its production of 10,000 pieces. It is also a condition rarity, most likely because of the general unawareness of mint-marked coins and their relative scarcity until the 1893 publication by Augustus Heaton of his groundbreaking work Treatise on Coinage of the United States Branch Mints. By then, most of the remaining 1863-S tens were well-worn. Today, VF-XF coins are usually all that are encountered with AU pieces such as this among the finest examples available. In hand, this example is considerably lighter in hue and more lustrous than seen in our images. The NGC population is only 3 with 6 graded higher (only one of which is mint state).
Listed at $30,000 in the CDN CPG and $33,500 in the NGC price guide.
Offfered at $26,320
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Overseas discoveries of large quantities of Philadelphia Mint No Motto eagles has made the 1853 far more available in lower Uncirculated grades than they were even a decade ago. As with virtually all dates of the No Motto type, MS62 1853 eagles remain scarce, and this date is very rare in MS63 or finer. This particular example offers pleasing orange-gold color and satiny surfaces. The PCGS population is only 5 with 3 graded higher.
Listed at $31,200 in the CDN CPG and $35,000 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $27,700
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