Moffatt & Co gold resembles US coins
RogerB
Posts: 8,852 ✭✭✭✭✭
This note will be of interest to collectors of Californian gold.
On a related subject. evidently US coins containing California gold made before 1851 likely contain up to 1% iridium. interesting added test for authenticity.
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How to identify iridium
Pacific Northwest Numismatic Association
Super cool! Keep up the good work.
@RogerB these are great, thanks for sharing. It took my lady and I about 10 minutes to read the cursive but was worth it. This might sound high maintenance, but for those of us who are not versed in regularly reading cursive, it might be helpful to post the text version if it is available...just a thought.
Cool stuff
I still cannot figure out what the word is on the 2nd line after "1st" and is that "steamer" in line 7? And is the date 1852 or 1850? If 1852 it is not very timely as Moffat began striking these in 1849.
Joseph J. Singleton - First Superintendent of the U.S. Branch Mint in Dahlonega Georgia
Findley Ridge Collection
About Findley Ridge
Looks like that word is "inst"
Just means instant... in this case meaning this month. So he's mentioning receipt of his letter dated the 1st of this month (May) when he's writing on May 4th.
Michael Kittle Rare Coins --- 1908-S Indian Head Cent Grading Set --- No. 1 1909 Mint Set --- Kittlecoins on Facebook --- Long Beach Table 448
May not be 100%, but I whipped this out in about 30 seconds...
Treasury Department
4th May, 1852
Sir, I acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 1st ? on the subject of the resemblance of the coin issued by Moffatt & Co of California to the regular coin of the United States, and state in reply, that the Department will by the next Steamer, address the United States Assayer at San Francisco on the subject.
Very Respectfully
Your ??
Secretary of the Treasury
?? Esq.(uire)
Director of the Mint
Philadelphia
--Severian the Lame
Here's a well circulated example of a Moffat & Co half eagle for those not familiar with their coinage.
Joseph J. Singleton - First Superintendent of the U.S. Branch Mint in Dahlonega Georgia
Findley Ridge Collection
About Findley Ridge
The letter's salutation looks like:
Very Respectfully
Your Obt. Svt. (Your Obedient Servant)
Thos Corwin (Thomas Corwin)
Secretary of the Treasury.
G. N. Eckert Esq. (George N. Eckert, Esquire) [Edited to remove typo]
Director of the Mint
Philadelphia
Interestingly enough, German immigrant and San Francisco resident Albert Kuner was the engraver for the Moffat coins.
He later ran a shop where he manufactured, among other things, my uncle's 1895 Samuel Bridge scholastic achievement medal.
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Interesting about the Iridium content. @RogerB Thanks for the post!
And here's a few of my Moffat coins:
@ShadyDave...Just curious...was it the penmanship that made it difficult? Or cursive in general? I have read that many schools are no longer teaching cursive....Thanks.. Cheers, RickO
Cursive in general is tough for me to read. We were taught how to write it in school (5th grade I think), but I probably couldn't write it correctly anymore. Since I rarely had/have to read something handwritten like this, it can be a challenge
Interesting.... We had to submit essays in cursive in high school... I only started printing messages when I got into business.....not that my handwriting was that bad, just that people could read it easily... I worked in other countries for years... and here in the states we had large immigrant worker populations...so printing was the best way to go. Cheers, RickO
"G. M. Eckfeldt Esq. (George N. Eckfeldt, Esquire)" should be "G. N. Eckert Esq. (George Nicholas Eckert, Esquire)"
Much 18th century handwriting is less legible than the image posted above. The US Mint had penmanship as one of its test items fro prospective clerks.
Eckert was Director of the Mint at the time. There is follow-on correspondence, but I have not translated it yet.