1839-D $2.50 NGC EF45 CAC

Variety-1. The 1839-D is not the rarest Dahlonega quarter eagle (that honor belongs to the 1856-D) but it is clearly the most popular and certainly the most historically significant. It has the dual distinction of being a one-year type and a first-year-of-issue which gives it a very broad range of appeal. While not really a rare coin, it is very hard to find with original color and surfaces. The present example is one of the nicer collector grade 1839-D quarter eagles that I have owned in some time. It has good detail and choice surfaces with rich natural orange-gold pastel color. There is nice balance between the obverse and the reverse with more detail on the feathers than usual. The last EF45 1839-D quarter eagle to sell was a PCGS example in the Heritage 12/10 auction that brought $6,325.

CAC has approved two in this grade with six finer.