NEWLY DISCOVERED CHOICE UNCIRCULATED 1851-C HALF EAGLE; LIKELY SECOND FINEST KNOWN

Variety 1; "earring" in Liberty's earlobe.

The 1851-C is the rarest Charlotte half eagle struck during the 1847-1853 production run. It is not often seen above AU55 and there are likely not more than six or seven known in Uncirculated of which this new discovery is likely the second finest known, trailing only the Elrod/Ashland City coin which is now in a PCGS MS64 holder.

This is among the finest Charlotte half eagles of any date which I have had the pleasure of owning. It is characterized by remarkable deep green-gold color which is more intense than on any example of this date that I have seen. The underlying surfaces are very frosty and the strike is extremely sharp with full details at the centers. A few ultra-small ticks in the left obverse field are barely visible and a bit of planchet roughness around Liberty's eye is mint-made and I have noted this on other 1851-C half eagles. The overall appearance is exceptional and this is a truly magnificent coin for the date and grade.

An NGC MS63 1851-C from the Fairfax Collection sold for $30,500 as Heritage 4/13: 4522. The aforementioned Elrod coin was once in an NGC MS63 holder and it realized $46,000 as such all the way back in the February 1999 Heritage Long Beach sale. After it was upgraded to NGC MS64, it realized an impressive $69,000 in the January 2003 Heritage auction. I have seen that coin in person and while it is graded MS64 by PCGS, I feel it is only a small amount finer than the present PCGS MS63.

Excepting the 1852-C which has seen its population in MS63 and MS64 swell due to a hoard, all Charlotte half eagles are very rare in MS63 and above, especially when they look like the present 1851-C. This is a glorious and important coin which will make an impressive addition to a world-class set of Charlotte half eagles.

This is the single finest graded example of this issue with CAC approval.