RARE PCGS AU58 1853-O DOUBLE EAGLE

The 1853-O is the fourth most available New Orleans double eagle after the 1850-O, 1851-O and 1852-O. Unlike the 1851-O and 1852-O (and similarly to the 1850-O), the 1853-O is extremely scarce in properly graded AU58 and it is exceedingly rare in Uncirculated. The finest known, by a large margin, is the Hansen-Crawford PCGS MS63.

The few AU58's of this date which I have seen in the last decade have either been overgraded or have been stripped of their originality. The present examples shows dynamic deep, attractive yellow-gold color with a good amount of mint luster still clinging to the choice surfaces. The strike is very sharp and the overall eye appeal is considerably above average for the date and grade.

Only three PCGS AU58 1853-O double eagles have sold at auction since 2000. The most recent sale wasin 2010 for a coin which I felt was overgraded and its weak price of $18,400 reflected this. In the 2013 ANA auction, Heritage sold an NGC AU58 for $21,150 which, in my opinion, was not close to the present example in terms of quality.

If you are a serious collector of New Orleans double eagles, you know how rare this date is in properly graded AU58 and how likely you are to locate a better one than this.