1854-D $1.00 PCGS AU55

The 1854-D is the rarest Type One gold dollar from this mint. Just 2,935 were struck and fewer than 100 are known today. When available, the typical 1854-D dollar grades EF or so and is characterized by bright, unappealing surfaces. This pleasing example is among the most original 1854-D dollars that I have seen. It shows lovely natural green-gold color with considerable reddish splashes on the obverse and, more intensely, on the reverse. The strike is excellent for the issue while the planchet is unimprovable with none of the imperfections that are so common to the issues. The population figures for this date at both services are severely inflated and give the misleading impression that this date is available in AU55. It most clearly as not. Want proof? There has been just one PCGS AU55 example sold at auction in the last seven years: Goldberg 2/05: 2129, ex Goldberg 6/04: 1047. This coin sold for $8,050 and $8,913, respectively, in a market that wasn't as interested in choice, rare Dahlonega gold dollars as is the current one. If you are assembling a set of gold dollars from this mint, the chances are good that you need an 1854-D. And the chances are even better that you won't find a more wholesome, original piece than this one.