VERY CHOICE CAC APPROVED PCGS MS63 1849 QUARTER EAGLE, AMONG THE FINEST KNOWN

As with many of the 1840's Philadelphia quarter eagles, the 1849 is rare and overlooked in higher grades. There are probably not more than a dozen known in Uncirculated with many of these in the MS60 to MS62 range. There are three or four which grade MS63 and the finest is graded MS64 by PCGS.

The naked-eye appearance is outstanding for the date and grade with nice surfaces, crisp detail and pleasing natural orange-gold color which is exactly "right" for the issue. There is a small planchet void beneath the ear of Liberty which is almost certainly mint-made; a circular mark on the lowest horizontal stripe in the shield is also mint-made and I have seen this on other 1849 quarter eagles.

Only two APR's exist for PCGS MS63 1849 quarter eagles since July 2008 and these were for the same low-end coin. In January 2007, a much more solid-for-the-grade example (not the present coin) brought $10,465 as Lot 5420 in the Heritage FUN auction.

The sophisticated Liberty Head quarter eagle specialist will appreciate the important of this solid Condition Census issue.

CAC has approved two in this grade with none finer.

Ex David Akers 5/98: 1762 (where it sold "raw" for $7,975), John Pittman colllection, obtained from the Numismatic Gallery's 1950 sale of the Menjou collection.