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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