LOVELY GEM "SLIDER" 1802/1 HALF EAGLE, EXTREMELY RARE VARIETY

BD-3, High R-7 (five or six known).

There are no less than eight die varieties of 1802 half eagle. All 1802 half eagles are actually 1802/1 overdates. Five varieties are the "centered overdates" while the remaining three are designated as a "high overdate." There are a number of rare varieties but the rarest is BD-3 which shares a similar obverse with the other four but which has a unique reverse. There is a pronounced die gouge (mint-made) at star ten on the reverse which easily identifies this extremely rare variety. According to the Bass/Dannreuther reference, there are just two known: the coin in the Bass reference collection and the discovery piece which Stacks sold in 2001. Since the publication of this excellent reference, a few more have shown up bringing the estimated total to five or six coins.

Quite often, extremely rare gold varieties are represented by very ugly survivors. This is not so in the case of the Western Springs II coin, as it is an exceptional slider with the appearance of a nice Uncirculated coin. The surfaces show considerable luster below rich natural yellow-gold hues and the detail on both sides is sharp. There is just the slightest amount of wear seen on the high spots of the obverse but, in my opinion, this piece would not look out of place in an MS61 holder.

The only other auction appearance for this variety occurred back in May 2001 when Stacks sold the discovery coin for $8,625 as a raw "AU." The Western Springs coin last sold in 2008; see below for the provenance.

There are not a ton of collectors who specialize in early gold varieties but those that do are very dedicated and it is a certainty that they need an 1802/1 BD-3 half eagle for their set. In addition, the coin is really nice in terms of its visual eye appeal. An important opportunity.

CAC has approved 15 in AU58 (including at least one in 58+) with 24 finer.

Ex: Heritage 4/08: 2429 (as PCGS AU55) where it sold for $27,600.

FROM THE WESTERN SPRINGS II COLLECTION