The 1857-S Liberty double eagle was a rare issue in high grade before the recovery of the treasure from the S.S. Central America. Fortunately for present-day collectors, more than 5,000 examples were discovered in that famous shipwreck find, making the 1857-S the most available Type One double eagle in high grade, and the favorite choice of type collectors.
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Although the mintage for the 1860 double eagles was a healthy 577,000-plus pieces, the issue is a conditional rarity, like so many early Liberty Head twenties from all mints. A considerable number were found aboard the S.S. Republic, which sank in 1865 in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Georgia, but most of those coins were in lower Mint State grades. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth report an average certified grade of AU53, and an average auction grade just below MS60. The current PCGS population is just 14 with 15 higher. Listed at $10,900 in the CDN CPG, $11,000 in the PCGS price guide and $12,000 in Trends.
Offered at $9,995 delivered
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Kitco News – Fund managers sharply increased their bullish positioning in gold futures during the most recent reporting week for data compiled by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Markets seemingly were factoring in a more dovish U.S. Federal Reserve even before policymakers gave markets a dovish surprise for the second straight meeting, analysts said.
During the week-long period to March 19 covered by the report, Comex April gold rose by $8.40 to $1,306.50 an ounce, while May silver dipped 4.1 cents to $15.372.
Net long or short positioning in the CFTC data reflect the difference between the total number of bullish (long) and bearish (short) contracts. Traders monitor the data to gauge the general mood of speculators, although excessively high or low numbers are viewed by many as signs of overbought or oversold markets that may be ripe for price corrections.
The CFTC’s most recent “disaggregated” report showed that money managers increased their net-long position in gold to 30,475 futures contracts as of March 19 from 17,407 the week before.
The cut-off date for the data was one day ahead of the last meeting of the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee, in which policymakers collectively signaled that there may be no rate hikes in all of 2019.
“Money managers aggressively covered their short gold positions and took out new long exposure as they anticipated the FOMC to sound a dovish tone,” said TD Securities. “The significant increase in length was also driven by the concurrent weakening of the USD [U.S. dollar] and renewed economic growth concerns.
“Indeed, the Fed delivered a significantly more dovish message than the market expected as it eliminated a hike this year. This prompted a relief rally, but no surge into a sustained breakout.”
The disaggregated data showed that money managers cut their gross shorts by 12,452 lots. The number of new longs increased by a modest 616.
“Speculative financial investors are … likely to continue betting on rising gold prices after having already stepped up their net-long positions considerably to [nearly] 30,500 contracts in the week to 19 March, according to the CFTC’s statistics,” said Commerzbank. “In our opinion, this further paves the way for gold as it continues on its upswing.”
Meanwhile, in the case of silver, the funds’ net length increased slightly to 9,716 lots from 9,487 as the amount of fresh buying slightly outpaced the fresh selling. Gross longs rose by 814 lots, while total shorts increased by 585.By Allen Sykora
The 1882 three dollar gold piece claims a business-strike mintage of 1,500 pieces, certainly a small total in absolute terms, but not out-of-the-ordinary in the context of the series. The 1882 has a relatively high survival rate, probably because contemporary collectors realized the low production total would make the coins more desirable in the future and saved high-quality pieces. The issue is still very rare at the MS65 level, however. This coin is quite dramatic in appearance, with fully, deeply mirrored surfaces on each side, accompanied by heavily frosted devices. This is one of only two examples of this date to have received the highly coveted DPL designation from NGC. The other was graded a lowly MS62DPL.
Offered at $33,600 delivered
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Only 18,000 eagles were minted in New Orleans throughout 1855, as gold coin production shifted to the new San Francisco Mint, which had opened the previous year. Apparently, very few were saved as this issue is rarely seen in higher grades. The NGC census stands at just 14 with none higher. This particular example offers flashy, highly lustrous surfaces and a pleasing overall appearance. Listed at $21,200 in the CDN CPG and the NGC price guide and $22,500 in Trends.
Offered at $16,675 delivered
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Often called the most beautiful American coin design, the Saint-Gaudens double eagle exhibited intricate treatment of the drapery and equal depth of the reverse design, rendering a three-dimensional appearance rarely seen on American coins before or since. Barbara Baxter writes in her chapter on “Coins and Medals” published in Augustus Saint-Gaudens 1848-1907, A Master of American Sculpture: Saint-Gaudens coins and medals set a new standard for American numismatic art, and the precedent that he established resulted in the commissioning of other professional artists, notably his former associates Bela Lyon Pratt, James Earle Fraser, and A.A. Weinman, to redesign other denominations of the coinage. Listed at $25,400 in the CDN CPG and $25,000 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $23,650 delivered
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Holding an example of the Octagonal fifty dollar gold pieces struck to commemorate the Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915, one notices several things. Chief among them are the coins’ size, shape, weight, and intricate design. Of the 1,509 examples struck, 645 pieces were sold to fair-goers for $100 apiece. The Octagonal coins’ novel design, reminiscent of California’s storied Gold Rush, undoubtedly contributed to their popularity. Additionally, the Octagonal slugs depict added dolphins around the margins, symbolizing the new “uninterrupted water route made possible by the Panama Canal.” For the same historic and design reasons collectors sought them out a hundred years ago, collectors continue to seek out examples today in all grades. The coin offered here is somewhat more lustrous and yellow-gold in hue, than seen in our images. Listed at $92,000 in the CDN CPG and $87,500 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $84,375 delivered
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David Lawrence calls the 1901-S the “King of all Barber Quarters” because of its low mintage and low survival rate. Only 72,664 Barber quarters were struck at the San Francisco Mint in 1901, a remarkably low mintage for any 20th century coin. There were relatively few coin collectors on the West Coast in 1901. Interest in collecting mintmarked issues was still in its infancy in the rest of the country, so most of the small mintage slipped into circulation at the time of production. Few examples were saved for numismatic purposes. As a result, most 1901-S quarters appear in lower circulated grades today. Mint State coins are quite elusive. The PCGS population is only 4 with 5 higher. This one is frosty, white and gorgeous!
Offered at $118,125 delivered
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Although the San Francisco Mint struck slightly more than 2,000,000 double eagles in 1899, many of them were used in foreign banking and business transactions. Additionally, many of the extant examples were repatriated from European holdings in recent decades. This very sharply struck examples is tied with ten others for the highest graded by NGC. For its part, PCGS has graded only three MS65’s with one higher. Listed at $20,600 in the CDN CPG, $24,500 in the NGC price guide and $21,000 in Trends.
Offered at $18,115 delivered
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