Gobrecht Dollars and Medals from the Hanover Numismatic Society

Zoins

So after about 15 years after first seeing this ICG slabbed 1966 HNS Gobrect Dollar, I was finally able to pick it up on the bay. I'm pretty sure this is the same one I saw all those years ago but can't be 100% sure since I can't find it on WorthPoint.

I remember reading this article from @Coinosaurus saying these would be easy to find! They haven't been so easy but I also haven't been looking 100% of the time. I'm glad to have picked up the specimen in the old green ICG slab.

Of note, while some of these have the word "ONE DOLLAR" effaced, I've actually never seen one like that. All the ones I've seen say "ONE DOLLAR".

Unfortunately, while I now have the 1966 Gobrecht Dollar, I missed out on two full sets of silvers in the intervening years. I do have a full set in bronze and a Capital Plastics case.

Here's the 2005 article from E-Gobrecht:

http://www.seateddimevarieties.com/E-Gobrecht Volume 1, Issue 5.htm

Hanover Numismatic Society Gobrecht Medals issued from 1966 to 1981 by Len Augsburger.

In 1966, the Hanover Numismatic Society of Hanover, Pennsylvania commissioned a series of medals commemorating the work of Christian Gobrecht, who was born in Hanover in 1785. Silver and bronze medals were issued annually through 1981. The 1966 medal featured a portrait of Gobrecht on the obverse, while the reverse was a reproduction of the Gobrecht dollar reverse as first minted in 1836. The reverse included the words "ONE DOLLAR" which quickly attracted the attention of the FBI. Many of the 1966 medals were soon seized, in addition to the reverse die, which was never returned. The medals were returned to collectors with the legend "ONE DOLLAR" effaced. The Hobby Protection Act of 1973, mandating the use of the word "COPY" on reproductions, had not yet clarified the legality of such items as the 1966 Gobrecht medal. The FBI was unable to locate all of the 1966s and many survive today without the reverse effacement.

Sketches of Gobrecht works were provided to a private mint that returned an aluminum trial piece for each year, along with the actual dies after the silver and bronze strikings were complete. These dies remain with the Hanover Numismatic Society. The obverse die remained the same throughout the entire series and many of the Gobrecht medals described in Julian's "Medals of the United States Mint" were used as the basis for the reverse dies. One example is the Charles Carroll medal, Julian PE-6, which was used for the 1976 and 1977 reverses. An original example of this 1826 medal, in gold, appeared in Stack's Ford V 10/2004:220, there illustrated with a full-page color plate.

The Hanover Gobrecht medals were struck to the extent of several hundred each year, this number declining as the price of silver rose in the 1970s. They remain highly collectible today, with specimens frequently appearing on eBay.com (search for "Gobrecht"). Bronze examples are typically several dollars each, while the silver specimens are in the twenty to thirty dollar range. Medals from the later 1970s are scarce, owing to their diminished mintages and are infrequently seen on http://www.eBay.com . The American Numismatic Society collection has a full set of these interesting medals in bronze, along with a silver example from the 1966 inaugural year of the series.

Thanks to Sterling Yost of the Hanover club for supplying much of the above information.

coinsarefun

Very cool, I like it very much. Nice reward after all those years!

NumisOxide

Very cool. I like it!

ricko

Really nice medal....Thanks for the history.... Do the pieces with one dollar effaced often appear for sale? Cheers, RickO

RichieURich

The 1966 silver medals with "ONE DOLLAR" effaced are quite rare. I've only seen one (at $500) and heard about a couple others. The full set of silver medals sells for around $400. The last two medals, 1980 and 1981, have a smaller diameter than the other medals, so they roll around in the holders.

VicPortland

Very cool. Thanks for sharing.