Is this coin unique?

MrEureka

SethChandler

Verfied, yes. But there is another that is rumored to exist in an old grouping (non-collector) in Reno, NV.

michael

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

no



michael

Barry

It is at the moment, but one nevers knows if and when a long lost brother will be found (or a hoard in a shipwreck). Lots of shenanigans went on at the mint in those days.

kranky

I thought it was unique. It's not?

MrEureka

Here's something I read a while back that's confusing me:

1873-CC NO ARROWS DIME DISCOVERY

Rusty Goe writes: "For the information of E-Sylum subscribers,
I want to share this bit of news from PCGS (Professional
Coin Grading Service)..

Michael Sherman has confirmed by phone that PCGS graded
a discovery specimen of an 1873-CC "NO" Arrows Seated
Liberty dime.

We noticed in the Population Report that a specimen of this
rare suddenly appeared, but we were skeptical. That's when
we called PCGS to confirm if it was true. Their representative
Michael Sherman checked on it and affirmed that an 1873-CC
No Arrows dime had been graded in December 2002. It is in
the VG-VF range.

(This is not to be confused with the fact that both PCGS and
NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation) list an Uncirculated
specimen of this date - this is the Eliasberg coin.)

For 130 years (or at least since there was interest) it has been
believed that only one specimen of the 1873-CC N/A dime
existed. This is an Assay Commission coin, saved from melting,
eventually passing through the hands of John Haseltine, Stephen
Nagy, William Woodin, Rudolph Kohler, Charles M. Williams,
and finally in 1950, Louis E. Eliasberg, Jr. It remained in
Elaisberg's collection until 1996, when Waldo Bolen purchased
it at the Bowers & Merena sale for $550,000. The coin was
subsequently sold in a Heritage auction in 1999 for $632,500.

After speaking to Michael Sherman at PCGS, my wife was
surprised that there had been no press release issued regarding
the coin. With the media frenzy surrounding the 1913 Liberty
nickel, and the disposition to report any and every discovery
in the coin hobby, it seems like the discovery of a second
1873-CC N/A dime would at least be the story of the year.

We contacted Coin World and Numismatic News and were
told that they had not heard of this new discovery. William
Gibbs at Coin World was very interested and agreed that it
would be a sensational story. He began researching it.
Numismatic News was apathetic.

When Michael Sherman was asked why PCGS had not issued
a press release, his response was that since the coin has been
graded since December, and everyone has had an opportunity
to hear about it, the story is old news.. Well, no one I have
contacted, from dealers, collectors to the media, knew anything
about the coin.

We explained to PCGS that we are putting the finishing touch
on our book about the coins from the Carson City Mint, and
since the acknowledgment of a second specimen of this
classic rarity is of paramount importance, we want to be able
to revise our text, if necessary.

ust as Bowers and Merena has done regarding their offer of $1
million for a 1913 Liberty nickel, we are on the verge of posting
an offer of approximately $200 K for the second 1873-CC N/A
dime.

Any information can be forwarded to: Rusty Goe / Marie Goe
Southgate Coins / 5032 S. Virginia St. / Reno, NV 89502 /
mariesgate@sbcglobal.net / 775 -322-4455"


(From the eSylum)

Another source at CoinFacts.com

On the other hand, I haven't seen any other mention of the "new discovery" coin anywhere else. On the other other hand, the Bowers catalog description is suspiciously missing any mention of the coin's uniqueness. I'd really like to figure this out before the sale, for obvious reasons. Any help would be appreciated.

Placid

OWOOO!

elwood

Andy,

I talked to the owner of the coin in question. It was incorrectly labeled by PCGS. PCGS has wanted to fix it's mistake, but the owner likes it in it's current holder as a novelty. And chooses not to have it reholdered.

kranky

Andy, this is from the next E-sylum issue that came out after the one you quoted:

Scott Rubin writes: "About the 1873-CC No Arrows Dime -
I wrote an article which appeared in Bowers and Merena's
Rare Coin Review and I think reprinted in the Eliasberg
Catalogue along with the Quarter. In the article I mention that
the 19th century Randall Sale contained such a dime. At the
time of Heaton's book on mint marked coinage he did not
consider this coin to be unique which at the time lead me to
believe there was more then one of them."

Rusty Goe writes: "Well, it was fun while it lasted, but PCGS
has acknowledged that there has NOT been a new 1873-CC
No Arrows dime certified. Apparently, the listing in the Pop
report was due to a "mechanical error" (typo).

This is what we suspected all along, and that is why we
asked to speak to one of PCGS's key personnel, who
undeniably confirmed that there was in fact a second specimen
graded. We had no reason to doubt the veracity of their
spokesman, who was unwavering even after being informed
of what a significant event it would be.

Several years ago a similar incident occurred. A second
1873-CC No Arrows dime appeared on the PCGS pop
report, but it was almost immediately discovered to be a typo.
The owner of the coin actually had some fun with it at coin
shows, showing his beat up circulated 1873-CC No Arrows
dime in a PCGS holder, and offering it for sale at approximately
$5500. The certificate on the holder said No Arrows, but the
coin itself, of course, had the arrows. If you have a 1999 pop
report, you can look it up. But it was soon corrected, and it
wasn't until 2003 that this latest one appeared.

Coin World's Bill Gibbs pursued this current story after we
reported it to him. Upon further examination of their data,
PCGS's rep. told Gibbs that his initial response had been
pre-mature, and the population figure was for an 1873-CC
WITH Arrows dime in the VG - VF range. Bill Gibbs and I
agreed that this would have been a sensational story if it had
in fact been a NO Arrows dime.

Incidents such as this illustrate how influential population data
can be to the coin hobby. Integrity and accuracy are of
paramount importance, and can not be taken lightly. There
have been millions of coins certified since 1986, and it is easy
for many to get lost in the shuffle. Most of the coins are
inconsequential, e.g. - 1881-S dollars in MS-63. But
statistics for classic rarities must be held to stricter standards.
A red light needs to flash when dates with extremely low pop
figures are added to the reports. If these additions prove to
be accurate, press releases need to be issued to share the
news with the rest of the collector community.

In some ways its disappointing that a second 1873-CC No
Arrows dime was not discovered, but in another way, it is
also satisfying to preserve the revered status afforded to the
Eliasberg specimen. Coin collecting can always use celestial
classics.

As a sidenote: Special thanks to Len A. who offered us an
interesting piece of Carson City lore.

MrEureka

Thanks, Steve.

Edited to say "and Kranky"!

eagle7

Thank you all! These are the kind of threads which I enjoy reading! Very interesting and refreshing.

Barry

Interesting... Does that means the 1873-CC NA dime GSA sale is cancelled?

MFH

Very interesting thread. Didn't know that there was another 73-CC N/A Dime listed, even as a mechanical error. I always thought the coin was unique, as did Louis Eliasberg...