1860-S $20.00 NGC AU55

I bought a pair of higher grade 1860-S double eagles at the recent Baltimore coin show and, in my opinion, this example is nicer than the other (a PCGS AU58) which I sold wholesale. This piece has deep, rich green-gold color with a good deal of remaining luster. It is somewhat weakly struck for the issue with plainly bevelled edges and a lack of detail (even for this issue) on the hair below the tiara. Still, this is a premium coin on account of its originality and I find the 1860-S to be an extremely hard issue to find with natural color and surfaces.

1857 $20.00 NGC AU55

While not as scarce or as undervalued as the 1855 and 1856 double eagles, the 1857 is a tough issue in its own right. This piece has the luster and body of an AU58 but just a few too many small ticks on the surfaces to properly grade as such. The color, a light green with underlying flashes of rose, is very appealing. A good value for the Type One specialist.

1843 $10.00 NGC AU55

Doubled date variety. The 1843 eagle, like the quarter eagle of this date, is somewhat of an anomaly. Although 75,000+ were struck, the survival rate is low and it is almost never seen above AU55. In fact, I have only handled two in AU58 and none in Uncirculated in my nearly three decades of specializing in this series. This example is one of the few totally original 1843 eagles that I have seen with attractive deep, even green-gold color with some contrasting highlights. There are scattered marks in the fields with the only one(s) of note located around star ten. There are many undervalued condition rarities in the No Motto eagle series and I feel that nice, higher grade 1843's are among the better values from this decade.
CAC has only approved three 1843 eagles in all grades and none higher than AU50.

1855-D $2.50 PCGS AU55 CAC

At one time I felt that the 1855-D quarter eagle was the rarest coin from this mint. I now believe that this honor goes to the 1856-D quarter eagle but the 1855-D is unquestionably the second rarest. Of the 1,123 struck, around four to five dozen are known and almost all are well worn, poorly made and very unattractive. This coin is none of the above, making it exceptional for the date and grade. The quality of the planchet is far above avergae with none of the peels or imperfections seen on many 1855-D quarter eagles and the strike is actually not bad with some detail seen at the center. The surfaces show luster below medium orange-gold color and the overall eye appeal is far above average. I believe that there are no more than 12-15 properly graded AU examples of this date and at least half show prominent mint-made flaws. The last PCGS AU55 to sell at auction was Heritage 10/11: 4694 that brought $17,250. In the Heritage 2/12 auction, a pair of NGC AU55's sold for $17,250 and $18,400, respectively. An extremely important coin for the advanced specialist.

Ex Heritage 1/03: 4704 where it sold for $17,825.

This is the only 1855-D quarter eagle in AU55 to receive CAC approval; there is one finer with CAC approval.

1850-D $2.50 PCGS AU55 CAC

Due to the rarity of the issues from the middle part of this deacde, the 1850-D quarter eagle tends to be overlooked. However, it is a fairly hard coin to find in any grade with around 200 or so known from an original mintage of just 12,148. This nice, lustrous example is very solid for the grade with a good deal of luster present on both sides. The strike is typical for the date with a little bit of weakness seen at the centers but the borders are uncommonly sharp. The last PCGS AU55 example of the 1850-D to sell at auction was Bowers and Merena 6/07: 2534 which brought $4,198; since then, the last seven trades have all been for NGC coins.

CAC has approved three in this grade with five better.

1854-C $2.50 NGC AU55 CAC

The 1854-C is the first of three very difficult mid-1850's quarter eagles from this mint. Only 7,295 were struck and most of the 100-125 surviving examples are well-worn and lacking in eye appeal due to extensive abrasions and poor quality of strike. This is one of the nicer circulated 1854-C quarter eagles that I have seen in some time as it shows a good overall quality of strike, a majority of its natural frosty mint luster and very attractive fiery reddish-gold toning about much of the obverse and reverse periphery. This date is rare and quite expensive in Uncirculated, so for most collectors a Choice AU such as this is a smart choice for their Charlotte quarter eagle set. Very few AU55's have sold at auction in the last five years. The only two records, both for PCGS coins, were $6,613 in February 2012 (Goldberg) and $6,325 in January 2008 (Heritage).

CAC has approved two 1854-C quarter eagles in AU55 with one finer. A total of six in all grades have been approved.

1839-D $5.00 PCGS AU55 CAC

Variety 1, mintmark above the 3 in the date. The popular one-year type 1839-D is, along with the 1838-D and the 1861-D, the only half eagle from this mint with multiple levels of demand. By this, I mean that it is sought not only by Dahlonega specialists but by gold type collectors (and collectors of "neat coins") as well. This has pushed values up considerably for this issue in the last five or so years but I believe that there is more than enough demand to justify these new levels; not to mention a very limited supply of examples in any grade. I just sold a lovely PCGS AU58 1839-D half eagle a few weeks back and had many inquiries about that coin; the present piece is just about as choice. It shows natural medium yellow and greenish-gold colors at the centers framed by bands of reddish-gold at the rims with this color a bit stronger on the reverse. There is a good deal of luster for the grade and the detail is mostly sharp with just a touch of softness seen on the hair above the ear on the obverse. The last PCGS AU55 to trade at auction was ex Heritage 4/11: 5385 which brought $13,225. In my opinion, the current example is more original and more appealing for the grade. An important coin which is destined to reside in a connoisseur's set of Dahlonega half eagles.

This is one of two AU55 examples approved by CAC with one better. A total of six have been approved by CAC for the date.

1839-D $5.00 PCGS AU58

Variety 1. Mintmark directly over the top of the 3 in the date. This is the rarer of the two known varieties. Along with the 1838-D, the 1839-D is an important issue amongst Dahlonega half eagles as it is a one year type coin. The 1839-D is actually rarer than the 1838-D both in terms of overall and grade rarity. There are an estimated 200-225 known with as many as four dozen grading AU by today's standards. However, the great majority are in the AU50 to AU53 range and choice pieces are very rare. Only four to six are known in Uncirculated and the PCGS population of just three coins in AU58 should give a clear indication as to this coin's rarity in this grade. The present example is a highly lustrous slider with virtually no rub seen on the obverse and excellent overall detail for the issue. Both sides show some medium yellow-gold color and there are only a few light, scattered abrasions visible in the fields. The last APR for a PCGS AU58 1839-D half eagle was in May 2007 when Heritage sold a piece for $16,100; prior to this you have to go all the way back to October 1999 when the Bass II coin was sold for a reasonable $11,500.

1861 $20.00 PCGS AU55 CAC

You could look through a group of fifty AU55 examples of this date and not find one as original or as choice as this example. It has rich, natural orange-gold color over moderately abraded surfaces with great overall eye appeal. An affordable yet special example of this popular Civil War issue.

CAC has approved 11 in this grade with 46 higher.