1843-D $5.00 NGC AU58 CAC

It has become tremendously hard to find Gem Slider Dahlonega half eagles of any date; even the more common ones like the 1843-D. My theory is that many of the former AU58 coins were ruined in an attempt to garner a higher grade and most of the surviving examples have been cherished members of advanced collections for years. Its been many months since I've had an AU58 that was as nice as this example. It is very well made with an excellent quality strike on a choice, problem-free planchet. It has never been cleaned or dipped and it shows lovely light reddish-gold and orange hues, in slightly different configurations, on the obverse and reverse. If I had to choose the perfect date for a type coin within the Dahlonega half eagle series I'd probably select the 1843-D given the quality workmanship that characterizes this issue. That said, there are very few AU58's known for the date that compare to this and special coins like this are rarely offered to Dahlonega collectors any more.