Amongst the popular Civil War double eagles, only the 1862 and 1863 Philadelphia issues are more rare than the 1864. This date is seen most often in EF40 to AU53 and it has become very hard to find in the higher AU grades. In Uncirculated, it is quite scarce and nearly all the two to three dozen Uncirculated pieces are in the MS60 to MS61. The 1864 becomes very rare in MS62-63 and there is just one known finer than this; a remarkable PCGS MS65.

The appearance of this coin is sensational and I don’t use that word term lightly. The luster is frosty and dazzling in its intensity while the color is a rich light yellow and rose. The “split grade” which I would assign is unusual with the obverse grading an MS61 to MS62 but the reverse approaches the Gem level and would grade at least MS64 to MS64+ on its own. There are some scuffs in the left obverse field which limit the grade but this is no ordinary MS61 and the eye appeal can only be best appreciated by viewing this coin in person.

The last PCGS MS61 1864 double eagle to sell at auction was Heritage 6/08: 2278, which brought $20,700 in a market which was much weaker for this series than it is today. A PCGS MS62, approved by CAC, sold for $32,200 in Heritage’s April 2011 auction. It was a nice coin but very “scuffy” on the obverse and I don’t like it as much as the example I am offering here. In Heritage’s August 2011 sale, an NGC MS64+ brought $207,000. It was later upgraded to MS65 by PCGS and it sold to a very knowledgeable dealer for close to $300,000 last year.

This is a coin which has numerous levels of appeal: to the Type One collector, to the Civil War gold collector or to the double eagle date specialist who appreciates really neat looking pieces. Once this coin sells, it may be years before a better 1864 double eagle is available!