1862 $20.00 PCGS EF40
/The 1862 is the rarest Type One double eagle from the Philadelphia mint, eclipsing the 1859 and the 1863. It is hard to find in all grades and when available, it tends to be very unappealing. This example, which was recently located in Europe and which is identifiable as such by the plastic "gasket" that PCGS uses for coins they grade in their Paris office, is one of the few totally original examples of this date that I can recall seeing. It has deep, even orange-gold and greenish hues with very choice surfaces and sharp detail. There is some hidden luster within the protected areas and, to be honest, I think the coin is much closer to being an EF45 than an EF40. No EF40 examples have appeared at auction since Heritage 12/08: 6325 (graded by NGC) brought $6,325 and the present example is, in my opinion, as nice (or even nicer) than Heritage 9/20: 5570 (graded EF45 by NGC) that realized $8,625. An important Type One double eagle for the advanced collector.