@wondercoin said:
“I don't support the hypothetical posed here because that is a government to government transaction. I do support my example of using it to pay for a meal in San Francisco or Los Angeles.”
Why do you support the private debt only example (meal in SF or LA) but not the public debt example when both public and private debts were mentioned? In fact, if I recall, the Act requires the Philippines to pay the costs associated with the US Mint producing their coins. If these coins are not legal tender to pay that public debt to the US, you are saying bi-National coins with the United States listed on the very coins would not be accepted by the United States as legal tender to pay the public debts. You could be right, but that would make no sense that coins of the United States of America would not be acceptable to pay debts owed to the United States of America.
Maybe I should wake Justin up at 2:40 a.m.! 😉
Wondercoin
To some extent, this doesn't matter for the "legal tender" discussion because, as I mentioned, I think it's ultimately based on US law explicitly stating legal tender authorization.
The reason I used the private debt example for de facto currency use (like non-legal tender territorial coinage), is that the parties are envisioned to have an arm's length relationship and would presumably need to rely on the US government as a third-party to guarantee the payment.
In your hypothetical, the parties have a much closer, well-established relationship. Parties can decide on whatever payment instruments to use for their transaction without relying on an entity like the US government to guarantee value. It could simply be a barter transaction.
Justin just might get a kick out of this discussion! Imagine if Dell Loy became a customer?
Zoins- Would your position change if you knew that at the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis, the ice cream vendors were accepting the Faran Zerbe 1904 USPI coins (being sold at the fair) as legal tender cash for their ice cream? 😉
Wondercoin
Please visit my website at www.wondercoins.com and my ebay auctions under my user name www.wondercoin.com.
@wondercoin said:
Zoins- Would your position change if you knew that at the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis, the ice cream vendors were accepting the Faran Zerbe 1904 USPI coins (being sold at the fair) as legal tender cash for their ice cream? 😉
Wondercoin
As I mentioned, this line of discussion is only for de facto commercial use, not legal tender status, but is interesting nonetheless.
If you are interested in discussing de facto commercial use, then yes, I am interested.
If you are interested in discussing legal tender status, I do not consider that to be legal tender.
For USPI coinage, I am not aware of either legal tender status or de facto commercial use in the United States, but I'd be happy to learn of it. Were the 1904 World's Fair vendors accepting USPI coinage?
"These coins were once owned by such astute collectors as Eliasberg, Naftzger, Norweb, Pittman, Parmelee, Atwater, Garrett, Anderson-Dupont, Byron Reed and others." - BJ Searls, PCGS Set Registry Manager, 7/14/2010.
I really hope to see Mr. Hansen at some point in the future document his collection for provenance. I think it would add a lot of historic value. I confident all these famous pedigrees are found in the EAC Proofs that was purchased by D.L. Hansen from the Peter Miller EAC Proof Collection. As you saw in the previous update, he purchased eleven for upgrades to his existing coins. Today, you will see the ten coins purchased that he did not have, slot fillers. Of the 39 coins required in the Half Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1831-1857) Set, he purchased 21. According to my research and mathematical skills, the purchased resulted in adding 18 proof half cents to his duplicate collection. Mr. Hansen has not created a duplicate set, so we don’t know his second set completion percentage. We do know he has 18 of 39 required coins from the Peter Miller purchase. From what we know about previous updates in the past five years, I would not be hesitate to say his duplicate set is approx. 75% complete.
I indicated the ESM purchase added ten new coins. There were two sole finest PGGS POP 1/0 specimens, 1842 ORIGINAL, PR65RD and 1847 ORIGINAL, PR64RD. Also, two were tied for finest, 1849 LARGE DATE, PR64BN and 1855 PR65RD. All of the ten coins were PCGS Condition Census Top Five! The “worst” coin was the 1845 ORIGINAL, PR64RB with a PCGS POP of 4/3. This bottom of the lot coin is valued at $43,500. In the ten coins, two coins were not RB or RD designated: 1849 LARGE DATE, PR64BN, POP 2/0 and 1851 PR64BN, POP 1/1.
There are not that many current collectors that have registry sets for the 39 piece half cent major varieties proof set. Actually you can count all of them on two fingers. There were three before Peter Miller sold his set. Unfortunately, his set was not retired so it has been lost from the registry. The Miller ESM set was deleted on 3/24/2021. The other active collector is half cent specialist Jim McGuigan, as previously mention in a post that he is a PCGS Hall of Fame collector for early American half cents. The McGuigan set has a considerable higher weighted GPA than Hansen, so he should retain is top spot if he can find one of his missing coins before June 30th. The Hansen set is graded better than the famous Louis Eliasberg set, but the legendary HOF The Missouri Cabinet is still perched on top.
Today featured coin is the 1842 PR65RD Specimen that was listed as one of Miller's "top five" personal favorites. As stated, this is a coin that Mr. Hansen did not have in his collection. Let’s take a quick peek at this coin.
1842 Half Cent, Original, PR65RD
Information on the 1842 half cent is hard to come by. There’s no information in Coin Facts. In trying to find some tidbits to share, I came across one of my personal favorite writers from bygone years. About 25-30 years ago, I would often read articles that David Lange contributed to The Numismatics. The one I am about to share is not from The Numismatics, rather the NGC website. The article titled: The Coinage of 1842: Part One. In reference to the1842 Half Cent Proof, Mr. Lange wrote: There were no half cents made for circulation from 1836 through 1848, and those dated 1842 are all rare, proof-only strikings. Numismatists traditionally have divided these into "originals" and "restrikes," though no evidence exists to prove that any of these were coined during 1842. It's likely that the so-called originals were simply novodels, coins struck a few years later than the date they carry to fill gaps in the series. Those labeled as restrikes were simply later strikings of these novodels, made to supply the growing collector market of the 1850s. Whatever their true history, the half cents of 1842 are very rare and highly desired by series specialists.
There are a lot of comments made about the D.L. Hansen Collection. Some are good, and some are not so good. It appears our community is solidly on one side of the fence or the other. Mr. Lange said this coin is ”very rare and highly desired by series specialists.” I think what many people fail to realized, the work that Mr. Hansen is doing is at the level of an array of series specialists. There are several things that make Mr. Hansen unique, and we have discussed many of them over the past few years. The quality of this set is one that you would expect to be assembled by an EAC specialist and not particularly a 15,000 coin collector.
With a mintage of 15, Coin Facts survival estimates 11 specimens, with 3 GEM 65 or Better. I think the actual count could be a coin or two more, since I have confirmed four distinct specimens. In GEM Proof state, there are two coins certified by NGC, PR65BN and PR66RD. There are four PCGS certified, with three designated as Brown, PR65BN, PR65+BN, and PR66BN. The final and sixth entry in the POP charts is the Hansen/ESM PR65RD PCGS specimen. Amazingly, if there are truly six GEMs, only two have appeared in auction in modern era. This is my roster of six certified GEM coins.
1. Norweb/Partrick Specimen: PR66★ Red NGC, Ex: Richard B. Winsor (S.H. & H. Chapman, 12/1895), lot 1049; George H. Earle (Henry Chapman, 6/1912), lot 3668; Thomas L. Elder; (possibly) George H. Hall Collection (Stack's, 5/1945), lot 144 as "Brilliant red;" Dr. Charles A. Cass (Empire Collection, Stack's, 11/1957), lot 107; Norweb Family Collection (Bowers and Merena, 11/1987), lot 100; Jon Hanson; Donald G. Partrick (heritage 4/2021), Lot 3739, released $72,000 (Auction Record)
2. Hansen/ESM Specimen PR65RD PCGS, Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. McGuigan Specimen PR66BN PCGS, Ex JA/Stack; Jim McGuigan PCGS Hall of Fame Registry Set.
4. Missouri Cabinet Specimen: PR65+BN PCGS, Joseph Brobston Collection - Stack's FPL #69 1/1963, listed for $700 - Philip M. Showers Collection - Stack's, sold privately in 1969 - Willis Harrington duPont Collection - Fred S. "Freddy" Werner, sold privately in 2/1976 - Superior, sold privately in 2/1976 - Joe Flynn & Son Rare Coins, Inc. (Joseph S. Flynn, Jr.), sold privately on 4/20/1976 - R. Tettenhorst Collection - Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society - Missouri Cabinet (Hall of Fame Registry Set) - Goldbergs 1/2014:157, realized $29,900
5. PR65BN PCGS Specimen, Possible duplicate (unconfirmed).
6. PR65BN NGC Specimen, Possible duplicate(unconfirmed).
I will be discussing the Dell Loy Hansen purchase of The Peter Miller EAC Large Cent Proofs over the next few postings. This should be fun to watch.
Provenance: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (Harlan J. Berk, Ltd / David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1842 1/2C ORIGINAL, PR65RD PCGS POP 1/0, (PR66RD NGC finest certified) Certification #09811287, PCGS #1262 PCGS Price Guide $47,500 / Unknown, purchased as set Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set)
“The ESM Collector worked for many years to put together his amazing set of copper coinage. And when the opportunity came to keep the final 2 sets together and in private hands, it simply made sense to work with John Brush and D.L. Hansen. In less than a week we were able to put together the sale and it made for a perfect marriage of a collection and a collector.” - Mike Printz, HJBLTD 5/17/2021.
David Lawrence Rare Coins released a press statement this week: DLRC Acquires ESM Proof Half and Large Cent Collections from Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. I first saw the release in Monthly Greysheet online. The announcement also appeared on our host website. For more details, click this link.
The article did not give number of coins purchased rather stated, nearly complete set of Proof Half and Large Cents from the collector of the ESM Collection. I believe the purchased included all half and large cent proofs, with major varieties with the exception of the 1852 Original, Large Berries Half Cent. According to registry count, the total would be about 74 coins. The price of the transaction was not given. According to PCGS Price Guide, I would say the deal would be somewhere in the ballpark of $2,000,000. These coins are very rare and difficult to find in any condition, but the coins in the transaction are some of the finest known.
It was stated: One of the most impressive sets of Proof Half Cents and Large Cents ever put together. In a private transaction, Mike Printz of Harlan J. Berk, Ltd (HJBLTD) and John Brush of DLRC pieced together the transfer of the nearly complete set of Proof Half and Large Cents from the collector of the ESM Collection to the D.L. Hansen Collection. The collection, put together over many years, was the last piece of the ESM Collection that was to enter the marketplace. However, the private transaction put together by Brush and Printz allows the set to remain intact and to remain in the hands of a collector, DLRC’s partner, Dell Loy Hansen.
The Large Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1817-1857) set requires 36 coins. Prior to the acquisition, the Hansen set was 50% complete (18 of 36). Of the existing 18 pervious Hansen coins, he replaced six with the ESM purchase.
As you can see, all six coins are PCGS POP Top Five, with one specimen, 1842 PR65RD as sole finest red designated specimen known which results in a POP 1/0 classified coin. Two other coins are tied PCGS finest. The dog of the six is an amazing 1844 PR65RB with a PCGS POP of 2/2. The coin is TOP POP for RB, but two other coins are graded better. Today, let’s feature the 1842 PR65RD which replaces 1842PR64BN Certification #10792011. The existing coin is a POP 4/2 from the Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection. The coin is a N-1 Variety same as Hansen’s new ESM coin. The 1842 N-1 and N-2 cents are the only Small Date varieties, and proofs are known only of N-1. The die lumps below the 1 and 4 in the date are clearly visible on this early die state cent. (Heritage 5/2015)
1842 Braided Hair Cent, PR65RD, ex: Parmelee / Peter Miller
With a mintage of 15, Coin Facts survival estimates 11 specimens, with two GEM 65 or Better. Again, I believe we see Coin Facts as incorrect with the GEM survival. I place the survival at three probably four. PCGS list four GEM examples in its POP Report with NGC showing two. I know for certain one of the NGC listed has been crossed and has not been deleted from the active database. The Hansen PR65RD PCGS specimen has an active NGC number: Cert #242696-013. The NGC “Verify NGC Certification” lists the coin as NGC Grade, PF 65 RD, pedigreed to the Parmelee Collection. The NGC Price Guide Value is $96,000. So there is no doubt that NGC database has at least one duplicate. The other NGC graded GEM is a PR65BN. I cannot verify this coin, so it is possible both NGC GEMs are invalid listing.
As for the four PCGS GEMs, three, I can verify for certain. There is a PR66RB which has no information nor can I find an image. This would be a great coin to find some additional information. Amazingly, an 1842 Proof GEM has appeared in auction only three times in modern era. This is the list of GEM 1842 Braided Hair Cent that I put together.
1. Hansen / ESM / Parmelee Specimen, PR65RD PCGS (formally PR65 Red NGC), Lorin G. Parmelee (New York Coin & Stamp Co., 6/1890), lot 1137; Peter Mougey (Thomas L. Elder, 9/1910), lot 225; Dr. Henry W. Beckwith (S.H. Chapman, 4/1923), lot 98; William Festus Morgan (J.C. Morgenthau, 6/1932), lot 328; B. Max Mehl; T. James Clarke; later, Bowers and Merena (8/1999), lot 32; The Eugene H. Gardner Collection III / US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 5/2015 as PR65 Red NGC ), lot 98046, realized $73,437.50 (Auction Record); Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
2. Twin Leaf Specimen, PR66BN PCGS, Martin Haber; R. Tettenhorst, to the present collection, November 1994; Twin Leaf Collection of United States Large Cents, Part I (Stacks Bowers 7/2015) lot 2349, realized $25,850; Currently in a user's private PCGS Set Registry Inventory. 3. Dan Holmes Specimen, PR65BN PCGS, Superior 10/7/90:3390-Denis Loring-R. S. Brown, Jr. 4/17/99; Dan Holmes; Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldberg 2/2011), lot 32, realized $20,700.
4. PR66RB PCGS Specimen, Unknown
5. PR65BN NGC Specimen, Unknown, possible duplicate
In the 2015 Heritage Auction for the Eugene H. Gardner sale, the coin was graded PR65 RED by NGC and realized an auction record of $73,437.50. The record still stands today. The coin was headlined as: The Finest Known 1842 Proof, From the Parmelee and Mougey Collections. The Heritage Auctioneer described the coin as: This amazing Gem Red proof offers brilliant orange mint color on both sides, nearly as bright as the day it was made with only slight mellowing on each side. A hint of pale blue appears at the upper obverse and delicate light bluish-brown on the reverse. A few trivial toning spots will aid in future identification of this piece.
Provenance: See #1 in roster.
1842 Braided Hair Cent, PR65RD PCGS POP 1/0, Sole Finest Certification #25686183, PCGS #1957 PCGS Price Guide $95,000 / Unknown, purchased as set Ex: Parmelee / Gardner /Peter Miller
I have been working on my own $20 Liberty O's so I decided to check out the Hansen set. I am not sure if this set has been discussed on this thread but it is awesome. It has almost every top O available. You should check it out.
"This opportunity was another amazing opportunity that allowed us to grow what is already the greatest collection of US Coins put together by a private individual, and to not only improve several pieces already in the collection, but to fill some rather large holes. Having known Mike for many years and having worked with the ESM Collector before, we knew that the quality would be exquisite, and Mike made the transaction an easy one for us to put together." - John Brush 7/14/2010.
John Brush is quoted as saying “fill some rather large holes.” We will look that how significant the purchase was to filling hole in Large Cent portion of the Hansen Great Collection. If you recall, we saw the Miller purchase fill ten holes in the half cent collection. For large cents, the impact was much greater. The Hansen Large Cent Proof Collection had 18 holes to fill, and the purchase accomplished the task with ease. As you can see, the coins were not just any hole fillers, rather the a group of the finest certified by PCGS.
Most of these coins will never be replaced. Why?, because there are no coins better. Of the 18 coins that filled holes, sixteen are the finest known! There is one coin tied with one other coin as finest by PCGS, 1829 PR64RB, POP 2/0. The runt of the litter is the 1852, PR65RB, POP 1/1. The only PCGS coin that could improve this 18 piece group is the Magnificent Red Gem Proof 1852 from Twin Leaf Collection. The ex: Boyd – Naftzger – Tettenhorst specimen was sold in Stacks ‘s July 2015 Baltimore Auction for $105,750. The PCGS POP 1/0 specimens in the grouping just keep on going. How do you choose just one to feature? If you recall, Miller's "top five" personal favorites was published in 2010 and I included a listing of the coins in my opening posting a few days ago. Not all of his top 5 were GEMs. For that matter, only two of his top five were GEMS. I will feature one of them that was not a GEM, the 1832 Braided Hair Cent.
1832 Braided Hair Cent PR64RD, Ex: Peter Miller (ESM Registry Set)
With a mintage of 5, this coin is a rarity from day one. Expert Ron Guth wrote: Proof 1832 Large Cents are exceedingly rare. Perhaps as many as five different examples are known, one of which is in the Smithsonian and the other is from an old sale in the early part of the twentieth century and which has not been seen for over one hundred years). Thus, there are only three collectible examples at present (2015). The finest Proof 1832 Large Cent is the PCGS PR64RD example that is currently part of the ESM Collection (one of the finest collections of U.S. coins ever assembled).
In a Stack’s 2015 sale, the auctioneer offered this roster of specimens. When Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of United States and Colonial Proof Coins was published; he listed just two known Proof 1832 cents, including this one, though his provenance strings were not correct. More recently, there were three confirmed, including one in the Smithsonian Collection. However, it seems that the number is now five. There has been a great deal of confusion over these specimens and crossing of wires amongst the provenance lines seems to have be-come almost tradition. The five different specimens we are aware of include:
1. Hansen / ESM Specimen; 1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64RD PCGS Public Auction of U.S. Gold, Silver & Copper Coins / possibly Northern Bay Collection (Stack's 3/2006 as uncertified PR64, Proof Red), lot 3584, $83,375 (Auction Record); Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection
2. Coinbert Specimen, 1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64BN PCGS, Charles J. Dupont, Stack’s, September 1954:707; Dorothy Nelson, Stack’s, February 1976:109; Jerry Bobbe; Roy E. Naftzger, Jr.; 1989 EAC sale, April 1989:336; Denis Loring; R. Tettenhorst; Jay Parrino, to the present collection, November 1995; Twin Leaf Collection of United States Large Cents, Part I (Stacks Bowers 7/2015), lot 2223, realized $35,250, Coinbert Collection (1832 4-piece PCGS Registry Set)
3. Mervis Specimen,1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64 Brown NGC Thomas Cleneay (Chapman Brothers, 12/1890), lot 1879; Anderson Dupont Sale (Stack's, 9/1954), lot 707; TAD Sale (Stack's, 2/1976), lot 109; EAC Sale (4/1989), lot 336; Denis Loring; R. Tettenhorst; W.M. Wadlington (via Bob Grellman and Chris Victor-McCawley); FUN Signature Auction / Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection (Heritage 1/2014), lot 2162, realized $38,187.50.
4. James B. Wilson Specimen, Proof, James Wilson (Thomas L. Elder, 10/1908), lot 1073. Note from Stacks sale: The Breen plate coin supposedly also included James B. Wilson (lot 1073) as a past owner, but it does not seem to match the Wilson plate, which should show the same spot that we know was already present at the time. In fact, the Wilson plate coin does not seem to match any other coins we have seen images of, so it could be a fifth specimen, but that plate is very old and the coin could have changed considerably since Wilson. Note: This specimen is sometimes shown in #3 provenance.
5. National Numismatics Collection Specimen, Proof, Smithsonian Institution
Stack’s writes: Whatever the case, with only four or five known coins, this Proof 1832 cent is a prize for the finest of collections. The magnificent cabinets of Norweb, Eliasberg and Pittman, all known for great early Proof coins, were missing this issue.
The Hansen-ESM specimen has only one auction appearance that I can find. The sale was hosted by Stack’s and was labeled: Public Auction of U.S. Gold, Silver & Copper Coins, U.S. Paper Currency and World Gold & Silver Coins. In PCGS Auction Prices information on the website, the coin appears to be from a collection named, Northern Bay Collection. I have not been able to confirm that by a second source. If the plates have been matched to any earlier sales, I have not been able to confirm. Stack’s offered this information in the 2006 sale: The reverse die shows a crack extending from the final 'A' of AMERICA through much of UNITED; a feature seldom seen on Proof coins, although the Philadelphia Mint was not terribly careful with regard to the die states used to strike Proofs during this period. Close examination yields no troubling specks or spots to disturb the splendid surfaces of this jewel. It should be noted, furthermore, that no Proof examples of this date have been graded by either NGC or PCGS. For the specialist, this may be the only opportunity to purchase a Proof of this date for many decades to come. Breen notes that just 3 are known in his 1988 Encyclopedia, up from 2 listed in his 1977 Proof Encyclopedia. Without question, one of the highlights of the present extensive offering and a coin worthy of the finest collection.
The coin was described as: An extraordinary coin that retains magnificent red color with virtually no fading. The strike is a match to the Anderson DuPont coin that we sold in 1954, with the final star sharp, and the others slightly soft at their centers. This does not appear to be the Anderson DuPont coin, however, as it was noted to be an ''olive and steel blue Proof.'' If photographic plates are available, perhaps an examination of the plates could verify the matter one way or the other. There is evidence of double striking on the date. The fields, furthermore, offer an exceptionally reflective, watery appearance.
It is a shame that every POP 1/0 Specimen from the Peter Miller Collection cannot have its own feature. The fact is, it is just too many, although I would bet each would have a story to tell. I will complete the Peter Miller updates with just one more posting. Can it get better? Maybe not, but the last coin will be a dynamite coin! I promise.
Provenance: See #1 above
1832 Braided Hair Cent PR64RD PCGS POP 1/0, only known RB/RD Specimen Certification #06509037, PCGS #51798 PCGS Price Guide $80,000 / Unknown, purchased as set Ex: Peter Miller (ESM Registry Set)
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
A lot of the rarities we've been seeing Hansen buy show up less frequently than the iconic rarities he's passing on. IMHO, from the comfort of my recliner, without any skin in the game, and an outsider's perspective, it's smart buying because it takes advantage of all the relatively new info we have about rarity and frequency of appearance in the market. It's a modern collecting ethic. He's one of us.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
@tcollects said:
A lot of the rarities we've been seeing Hansen buy show up less frequently than the iconic rarities he's passing on. IMHO, from the comfort of my recliner, without any skin in the game, and an outsider's perspective, it's smart buying because it takes advantage of all the relatively new info we have about rarity and frequency of appearance in the market. It's a modern collecting ethic. He's one of us.
It would be a lot harder to reassemble sets of this caliber after they have been sold piecemeal while the icon coins are easier to get when the opportunity arises.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
That coin is totally all-time OMFUG.
remainder deleted as OT
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." - Geo. Orwell
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
Well it does have something to do with Hansen since your comment was directed at his purchase of his 1832 braided cent.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
Well it does have something to do with Hansen since your comment was directed at his purchase of his 1832 braided cent.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
The Mint did NOT know how to make no-brainer proofs at that time" The strike quality varied from one day to the next based on how well they fed the horses (or how hard they beat them) (or how much beer was consumed at lunch).
Northern Bay was the last really great raw coin auction. Most every type geek on the planet was there.
A person of your knowledge and erudition has an obligation to others, based on your presumed expert authority, to perform due diligence based on either experience or study, before you make a pronouncement like that one. I've sat next to Peter Miller at lot viewings. BS'd with Tony and Chris and Doug Bird, et al. A whole bunch of EAC weenies know this is a proof even if we earthlings don't.
I don't know, and you don't know, but I know I don't know... It sure-as-hell is the reddest red large cent of that design, mint state or proof, most anyone's ever seen.
Post-1891proofs, I agree. The 1891 Barbers are also well-made. just lightly Brillo'd.
However - steam press silver only -
Lots of smaller diameter pre-1853 coins, though they're more often "close enough for government work"
Many (10%?) post-1852 proof Seated 25c/50c/S$1 struck with weak stars. flat knees/breasts w/noticeably thinner frost etc.
Any number of post-1838 Seated proofs with striated over-polished dies sometimes eroding device details.
The famously controversial Pittman-Pogue 1838 Bust 25c.
Thus my comment “great looking coin”
And just because they didn’t always doesn’t mean they didn’t know how...
The shrug, to me, indicated ignorance and an unwillingness to admit it. Or, at the very least, a saddening lack of curiosity. It's nowhere near the first time it's happened.
The shrug was acknowledging there’s no way to know from that image of that coin - it looks unc but there are many attributes such as hidden hard mirrors only apparent at an angle that would totally be possible. Nothing more, nothing less. And you are treading rather heavily don’t you think - especially since not even your exalted self could pronounce that coin a proof from that image.
Most survivors have toned down to a brown color, with varying traces of original mint red. Technical quality ranges from PR60 to PR66, with most falling between those grades. One of the more exciting examples is the nearly full Red PCGS PR65CAM (now in the ESM Collection). - Ron Guth
All good things come to an end. I have certainly enjoyed studying a little about Pete Miller’s EAC Proofs. The set of coins are amazing. Mr. Miller started assembling the set in 2003, with a couple purchases. I will close his tribute with a few words spoken by Mr. Miller and Don Willis in a discussion of the ESM Copper Collection, when on display at Long Beach Expo. The interview took place August 13, 2010. The interview is seven minutes and thirty-seven seconds long. It is well worth the time to watch.
The Large Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1817-1857) set is a highlight, from the 1817 PR62BN POP 2/0 to the 1857 PR65RD Pop 2/0. The 36 piece set is described as: This set is overflowing with rarities, yet the coins are relatively affordable (all things considered) because so few collectors even attempt to put it together. After all, the mintages on several of the issues are less than ten pieces! This set comprises both the Coronet Head cents (1817-38) and the Braided Hair cents (1840-57). If you insist on PR65RD (or better) coins then you won’t go far with this set, but if you want one of the great challenges in any acceptable grade then this might be exactly what you're looking for!
The Hansen / Miller set is not only overflowing with rarities, it has many of the finest masterpieces known. You have seen in the past couple postings just a few of them. The set has 20 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (55%). Another seven is tied for finest, which result in 75% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another three have two. The lowest POP coin is the 1849 PR65RB with POP 4/3. Is it possible for anyone to assembly a better set? I don’t think so.
There are so many coins from this collection that I could highlight. The one I choose for today is the 1848 PR65CAM. It is not Hansen’s finest graded 1848. The coin is special because it is the only PCGS PRCAM proof in Large Cent. Just to be clear, from 1817-1857, this coin is the only PCGS PRCAM proof. There is one NGC proof CAM, but no more. This was a special coin and one of Mr. Miller’s personal favorites. I can certainly see why.
1848 Braided Hair Cent, PR65CAM
Expect Ron Guth: In 1848, Mint employees used a single pair of dies to strike a small amount of Proof Large Cents. Those dies were reserved solely for Proofs, and no business strikes followed. Thus, if an 1848 Large Cent can be attributed as a Newcomb 19, it is most definitely a Proof, even if it spent time in circulation. In 1977, Walter Breen enumerated twelve different examples; today, we know of at least the same number of demonstrably different ones, plus a few more. Thus, the number of survivors falls somewhere between a dozen and twenty examples. Most survivors have toned down to a brown color, with varying traces of original mint red. Technical quality ranges from PR60 to PR66, with most falling between those grades. One of the more exciting examples is the nearly full Red PCGS PR65CAM (now in the ESM Collection).
Mr. Guth gives survival between a dozen and twenty examples. Coin Facts estimates 26 in all grades. PCGS has certified 18 total. For this exercise, PCGS has certified six GEM Proofs, 3-PR65BN, 1-PR66BN, and 1- PR65CAM. (Note: Mr. Hansen now has the latter two). As for NGC, they have certified five GEM Proofs, 1-PR65RB, 1- PR65RD, 1-PR66BN, 2-PR66RB. It appears eleven certified GEM Proofs may not be that far off. In my reach, a GEM 1848 Proof has appeared in auction 13 times since the Garrett sale in 1979. It appears to me, there may be as many as nine discrete GEM Proof specimens. The following is a partial roster of the top condition census coins. Surprising (or maybe not) only two of NGC GEM proofs have appeared in auction, the Kaufman Specimen and a specimen sold by Kagin’s in 2020.
1. Hansen / Starr Specimen, PR66BN PCGS, CAC, Howard R. Newcomb; J. C. Morganthau and Co., May 1945, lot 745; Floyd T. Starr, Abe Kosoff, 1949 ANA, lot 1843, Willard C. Blaisdell; Roy E. Naftzger,Jr., Paramount, Auction ‘86, lot 1536; R. Tettenhorst, the Twin Leaf Collection, Stack’s-Bowers, July 16, 2015, lot 2478, The Regency Auction XXIII (Legend 10/2017), lot 67, realized $32,900, D.L Hansen Collection.
2. Kaufman Specimen, PR66RB NGC, Denver Platinum Night (Heritage 8/2006), lot 5047, realized $27,600; Signature US Coin Auction (Heritage 5/2009), lot 92, realized $21,850.
3. Hansen / Miller Specimen, PR65CAM, New Netherlands, 6/58, lot 1262; Northern Bay Collection Part 2 (Stacks’ 5/2006), lot 3600, realized $34,500.
4. Kagin’s Specimen, PR65RB NGC, ANA National Money Show Auction (Kagin’s 2/2020), Lot 1034, realized $15,000.
5. Naftzger Specimen, PR65 Graves (Stack’s 4/54) lot 1761; Starr, lot 575; Ted Naftzger Collection Part III / Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldberg 9/2009), lot 863, realized $42,550 (Auction Record)
As you can see, The D.L. Hansen Collection has two top coins. The first coin is the sole finest Brown specimen, PR66BN PCGS, CAC Approved. Mr. Hansen purchased the coin in a 2017 Legend Auction. I am not sure why the coin is not a RB, it has the look. The Hansen / Miller coin is a great addition to this great collection. It will to be nice to see if Mr. Hansen decides to keep both coins. I hope you have enjoyed following the updates on the Pete Miller purchase. You may or may not be surprised with the next update. Just plan to watch and see.
Provenance: See 3 above
1848 Braided Hair Cent, PR65CAM PCGS POP 1/0 PCGS, Only CAM PCGS Certified Large Cent Certification #09634147, PCGS #81975 PCGS Price Guide $60,500 / Unknown, purchased as set Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set)
PQ Coins Still Available in a Time of Show Shutdowns – Paradime Coins (CoinWeek -January 6, 2021)
There are two points that can be made with this upgrade. First point, after purchasing one of the greatest collections of EAC proofs, what would you expect next from the collector. If the collector is Dell Loy Hansen, do not be surprised to see a new upgrade. The second point, we have seen a few dealers complaining they cannot acquire any good coins for inventory. It is nice to see a small coin company, i.e., Paradime Coins that can acquire nice coins. When you can offer a coin to improve the Hansen Collection just after purchasing one of the greatest collections assembled for an early proof series, you are doing something right.
Coin Auction Highlights by Paradime Coins …… 2020 was a turbulent time for many. The numismatic market, however, in our opinion was stronger than ever for most series. Whether dealing in modern coinage, bullion, or collectible U.S coins, there was a surge in demand coupled with increased time being spent online perusing and searching for rarities that resulted in extremely strong online sales and online auction results. At ParadimeCoins, we are fortunate to have been set up as an online e-commerce site even before COVID. As such, our supply chain of acquiring PQ coins and selling our inventory to clients was stable and unaffected. Though we miss major shows deeply, we are optimistic that changes in our industry will not only bring a new breed of collectors and investors to the market as we have already started seeing, in fact roughly 80% of our sales in 2020 were to new clients who are building great sets but that prices for eye-appealing CAC coins will surge even higher. Congratulations Paradime Coins.
There is a difference in quality between the Hansen EAC half cent proof set and the large cent set. The large cent is without question, one of, or the greatest EAC Large Cent Proof set ever assembled. I gave the numbers a couple days ago. It has many of the finest masterpieces known. The set has 20 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (55%). Another seven is tied for finest, which result in 75% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another three have two. The half cent is not quite this good.
There is a key reason why Pete Miller could not build a half cent set comparable to his large cent set. Dell Loy Hansen will be facing the same challenge. That challenge goes by the name of Jim McGuigan. Mr. McGuigan is not a new kid in the block. He goes back to the time that Mr. Miller started his collection in 2003 or maybe before. The success that Mr. Miller accomplished in Large Cents, Mr. McGuigan accomplished in Half Cents. As a Hall of Famer, he is described by PCGS as: The Jim McGuigan set of half cents is one of the great specialized collections of all-time. The circulation strikes are extraordinary quality and very complete, both the basic and with varieties sets. The proofs are off-the-chart in terms of quality. Spend some time looking at this great collection. This is how it's supposed to be done. The McGuigan proof set is described as “off-the-chart in terms of quality”.
Let’s get a better handle on what “off-the-chart in terms of quality” means. The 39-piece set has 10 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (26%). Another four is tied for finest, which result in 36% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another eight have two. There are six coins outside the PCGS Condition Census Top Five. This is a great set, but there are a few opportunities for better coins. This is the look at the PCGS All-Times Finest sets.
As can be seen, the McGuigan set and The Missouri Cabinet set are very close in GPA weighted, 65.96 vs 65.97. The major difference in the two Hall of Fame sets, The Missouri Cabinet set was completed, and the McGuigan set is missing two coins. The Hansen set is in the mix, but the GPA weighted is downed by 0.35 point and missing the very challenging 1852 Lg Berries specimen. It will be interesting to watch Hansen set in future and whether it will make a challenge for the top spot.
1856 Braided Hair Half Cent, B-1, PR66RB
Coin Factors does not make it exactly clear the two major varieties for the 1856 Braided Hair Half Cent. PCGS #35423, #34424, #35425 are defined as 1856 1/2C, (Proof), with no distinction of variety. The mintage given in all grades and varieties is typically 225. The survival estimate is about 50 for BN, 15 for RB, and three for RD. There has not been a PCGS certified GEM in RD.
PCGS #1329, #1330, #1331 are defined as 1856 1/2C Restrike, (Proof). The mintage and survival estimates are not given. Only two have been certified by PCGS at this time. They are both brown, PR64BN and PR65BN. Mr. Hansen has one of these, the PR65BN from the Missouri Cabinet. The new coin (PR66RB) replaces this coin. This purchase allows both major varieties in the D.L. Hansen Collection.
At the current time, PCGS only requires one specimen in the major varieties set. It will be interesting to see if this change in the future. In case it does, Mr. Hansen have two great specimens. The new PR66RB specimen was purchased from Paradime Coins. The coin was described as: From a minuscule mintage of 225 of which a generous 50 are estimated in all grades and condition believed to exist today, this ex American Numismatic Rarities "Classics Sale" 7/2003:103 is simply put the finest of this date in all designations. A pop 1/0 in RB, there is no other 66 in either brown or red. This delicately toned draped bust half cent with broad edges stands out superbly. With a price guide of $26,000 and no comp it is not difficult to appreciate the deep cobalt blue/green hues as it transition to bright neon red. Any copper proof is a prized collection, but obtaining a pop 1 single finest copper proof with a bonus cac approval and from the 1850's is a true accomplishment.
By all indications, this coin is exactly as described by Paradime Coins: A pop 1/0 in RB, there is no other 66 in either brown or red. Oddly, the PCGS registry does not recognize the coin as PCGS POP 1/0. This is as the coin appear in the set.
I cannot explain this conflict, except the coin appears to be a true POP 1/0. It appeared in a Great Collection Auction on 12/13/2020. The coin realized $15,187.50 with buyer’s fees. The auctioneer listed the coin as: Single finest with CAC approval. This may be how Paradime Coins obtained the coin. In an eBay listing, Paradime asked price was $23,000. The coin appeared to have been purchased in a private transaction, so the sale price in not known. In the Coin Facts Pedigree, the coin was listed as appearing in American Numismatic Rarities "Classics Sale" 7/2003:103. This information does not appear correct in my ANR catalog. More research is needed. This coin resulted in a nice upgrade to this great collection of Early American Copper Half Cents Proofs.
Provenance: Simpson Collection; Legend; Morphy (5/2014), lot 173 as part of a complete 1856 Proof Set; Internet Auction (12/2020), ID #899058, realized $15,187.50; Purchased in Private Transaction (Paradime Coins), D.L. Hansen Collection.
@ColonelJessup said:
Jim McGuigan has been around as a dealer since 1980 (or earlier) and collected before that. He could care less about registry points.
If true, why has he posted his set in the registry?
Great write up @Currin Just to add regarding the Dec 2020 1856 1/2C PR66RB PCGS CAC this was not an auction sale on GreatCollections per se, but was a brokered deal by GreatCollections with the owner of the coin and ParadimeCoins.
To share the fruits of his life-long passion? That's what they are. If no pictures are posted I'll take it all back. @Currin can compare the "sets", Jimmy could care less about what anyone else outside of classicists might think. I doubt if he thinks of what he owns as completable "sets", rather as a collection.
"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." - Geo. Orwell
"The finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date." - According to Doug Winter (HA 2/1999)
It has been a year since the last Charlotte update. This in one of the interesting facets when tracking the growth of this collection. You never know what will come next. We spent a couple weeks looking at some amazing EAC coins assembled over two decades by Pete Miller. Today we are switching to gold. First a little quick recap of the Hansen Charlotte Mint Gold Collection.
The completed basic set for this mint contains 50 items, and there are four additional items for the major varieties set. Even with this somewhat low count, only six registry collections have met the challenge for completion (Bass, Smithsonian, Eliasberg, Southern Collection, NC Collection and JJ Pitman). We know there are others as we will learn more about the Stanley Elrod Collection later in this posting. Hansen has ascended to the top of the registry for the basic 50-coin set. The collection achieved all-time finest for the first time in November 2018. Harry W. Bass was previously honored with assembling compete set of the highest quality gold coin collection minted at the Charlotte mint.
Presently, Hansen’s basic set has improved to GPA rating of 60.64 and the Bass set is 59.66. In the past 12 months, the Hansen team has replaced eight coins and improve the GPA by about 0.35 point. I have often said that I cannot make a claim that the Hansen is better than the Bass set, because we know comparing coins from different eras can be difficult and highly debatable. Also, it certainly would be interesting to see how the Hansen and Elrod sets compared. The only fact that can be concluded is that D. L. Hansen Collection of Charlotte Gold is the #1 register set of all-times and improving its GPA at a rate of a coin every couple months.
For the major varieties set, Hansen still needs two varieties (1849-C Open Wreath $1 and 1839/8 $2.5). Bass did not owned neither the 1949-C Open Wreath $1 or 1839/8 $2.5. If Hansen can complete the set with last two items, he will accomplish a goal that no has ever been able to achieve (Note: According to PCGS registry). Locating and purchasing the last two coins does not appear to be a focus for the Hansen Collection. It will be interesting to watch to see if the last two coins are obtainable at some point.
1842-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle MS65, CAC Approved, POP 1/0, Ex: Elrod
This coin is not only a PCGS TOP POP 1/0 specimen but may be the “finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.” According to Expert David Akers: Always very weakly struck and, like the 1841-C, often seen with a broad border and wire rim. Very rare in all grades. Stanley Kesselman says he handled a choice Unc. a few years ago, but I have never seen a strictly uncirculated 1842-C quarter eagle, and no more than a few that even graded a full EF. Like every quarter eagle from 1840 to 1842 (except 1841), the 1842-C is largely unappreciated as a rarity, and therefore, substantially undervalued. Doug Winter added by saying: 1842-C is one of the rarest quarter eagles from this mint. It is also one of the rarest coins of any denomination produced in Charlotte. It still remains relatively undervalued and under publicized in spite of its rarity. The 1842-C quarter eagle is a rare coin in any grade. It is nearly always seen in heavily worn conditions and is rare even properly graded EF40. This is the rarest Charlotte quarter eagle in high grades and properly graded AU examples are seldom offered for sale. In Mint state there are no more than three or four known, including one Gem, which is probably the single finest Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.
Coin Facts estimates 116 in all grades, with only four in mint condition, with one of the four a GEM. That sole finest GEM is now in the D.L. Hansen Collection and is featured here. PCGS has certified 91 specimens with probable resubmittals. The PCGS certified mint state can be boiled down to three: 2- MS62 and the sole Hansen MS65 GEM. As for NGC, they have four listed in the POP report, 2-MS61, 1-MS62 and a MS65 which is certainly the Ex: Elrod coin that appeared in a Heritage 1999 auction as MS 65 NGC. It appears there could be five TPG coins graded between MS61 and MS62. Most publications report only three which would lead to believe a couple in the POP reports are duplicates. The other two confirmed mint state specimens are the MS62 PCGS grade from the Soluna Collection and the MS61 PCGS grade from the Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection. The third may be a MS63 uncertified specimen that appeared in a R.M. Smythe Auction in 2003.
The early history of the Hansen GEM can be traced to the great Elrod Collection. Doug Winter wrote in an August 20, 2018, Coin Week article titled “Eight Great U.S. Coin Collections.” The Elrod Collection ranked #5 after the #1- The Ed Milas Collection of No Motto Half Eagles, #2 - The ELIASBERG Collection, #3 The NORWEB Collection, and #4 The GARRETT Collection. The Bass Collection was #8, humm..
Anyway, Mr. Winter described the Elrod Collection as: For most of the first part of the 20th century, branch mint coins were overlooked by all but a small number of collectors. Assembling specialized sets of coins from Charlotte and the other branch mints really did not begin in earnest until the late 1950s/early ’60s. One of the first collectors to specialize in high-grade examples of Charlotte coins was Stanley Elrod from Matthews, North Carolina. Elrod began collecting coins from his “local mint” in the 1960s and would go on to assemble at least three complete sets. The last of these was clearly the finest set of Charlotte coins ever assembled. It included a number of finest known and Condition Census pieces. It was first offered for sale as a complete set in the mid-1980s but serious negotiations regarding its sale did not begin until the end of that decade. It was eventually sold to a consortium of dealers who later sold it intact to California dealer/collector/investor Hugh Sconyers. For the next few years, Sconyers added to the collection. He was able to include a number of coins that were significantly finer than the original Elrod coins but which, at the same time, were of similar quality and appearance to the Elrod coins that were retained. In the middle part of the 1990s, Sconyers decided to sell the collection and it was purchased by Winthrop Carner, a New York dealer who specialized in rare gold coins. Carner proceeded to break up the collection and began selling coins to an eager audience of new collectors. The majority of the coins went to two collectors: William Miller from Michigan and Paul Dingler from North Carolina. Carner later sold the remainder of the Elrod collection back to Sconyers who then quietly brokered the coins to other collectors through a small number of dealers.
In February 1999, some of the Elrod coins were offered for sale as part of the Miller collection in the Heritage Long Beach auction. The pieces in the Dingler Collection remain off the market and the other Elrod coins are owned by a number of collectors and investors. The Elrod collection was unquestionably the finest set of Charlotte coins ever formed. Elrod was fortunate to begin collecting these coins at a time when he had little competition and nice, original Charlotte coins could still be found from time to time. The Elrod pedigree carries a great deal of weight among Charlotte collectors as it is an assurance that a coin is not only among the finest known examples of its respective issue but that it is choice and original as well.
On the PCGS label, the coin is pedigree to Elrod-Stell??. The last letter or two is covered by the CAC sticker. It appears to be Stella or Stellar. I have not been able to trace this collection. Here is the image of the label. Any help would be apricated.
The Hansen GEM appeared in a Heritage 1999 Auction in Long Beach, FL. The coin was highlighted as: Gem 1842-C Quarter Eagle--"The Finest Known Charlotte Quarter Eagle of Any Date". I wonder after 20 years if this statement stands true today? The auctioneer described the coins as: The 1842-C is one of the scarcest Charlotte quarter eagles in all grades. And yet it remains one of the most underrated with few other than specialists aware of its true rarity. Perhaps no more than 55-65 pieces are known in all grades with the majority of those grading VF or less. In XF and AU condition it is a very rare issue, and currently only two pieces are known in mint condition. Everything about this coin is atypical for the issue. Beginning with the strike, there is faint but unmistakable detail on the hair curls, the word LIBERTY is well defined, the peripheral stars well struck at the top of that side, and on the reverse only the eagle's left (facing) leg is weak. Soft, frosted mint luster covers both sides of this reddish-golden gem. The only marks of any consequence are a couple of shallow, angling scratches in the left obverse field that form a sideways V. This is the finest known example of this major Charlotte rarity, and it is four points better than the #2 coin on the Condition Census.
I do not know the recent history of the amazing coin. All I can say from online information, the coin made its way into the hands of John Brush and David Lawrence Rare Coins. Interesting according to auction information, this coin was not directly placed in the Hansen Collection as many of the DLRC coins are. The coin was placed in auction and Dell Loy Hansen had to win the coin by bidding. DLRC described the coins as: Historically, this coin is deemed to be the finest Charlotte Quarter Eagle in existence today. Of just 6,729 coins, this piece is the finest graded and bests the second finest for the date by 3 whole grades! Predominantly caramel-gold in color this original gem showcases an impressively sharp strike for the issue. Distraction free surfaces displays touches of glowing orange reflectivity in the central fields framing the central devices on both sides.
The CAC Approved GEM realized $182,500. This is a new auction record breaking the record obtained by the same coin the 1999 sale realizing $90,85. The highest price realized by another coin ($48,400) for the James A. Stack, Sr XF specimen in a 1994 Stacks sale. The coin that Hansen replaced in his collection is an 1842-C AU58, CAC, Cert #83816321, PCGS Pop 3/4. Now Hansen has found his GEM, this AU58 coin would make a nice addition in another Charlotte Collection if Mr. Hansen made it available in the future.
1842-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle MS65 PCGS Pop 1/0, CAC Approved Certification #33274510, PCGS #7724 PCGS Price Guide Value: $180,00 / Realized $182,500
Provenance: FUN Sale (New England Rare Coin Auctions 1/1982) Lot 1375; Stanley Elrod Collection; Hugh Sconyer Collection; William Miller by private transaction from dealer Winthrop Carner; William Miller Collection / Long Beach Sale (Heritage 2/1999 as MS65 NGC), Lot 6146, Realized $90,850; Internet Auction #1170 (DLRC 5/2021 as MS65 PCGS, CAC), Inventory #2260512, Realized $182,500 (Auction Record), D.L. Hansen Collection.
@ColonelJessup said:
Jim McGuigan has been around as a dealer since 1980 (or earlier) and collected before that. He could care less about registry points.
If true, why has he posted his set in the registry?
Posting in the registry isn't just for points. It can be to simply share a love of coins or track inventory.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
That coin is totally all-time OMFUG.
>
"Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers"???
Andy Lustig
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
@tradedollarnut said:
I guess these were done in England and shipped back Stateside
FWIW, I'm not 100% convinced that anything struck before 1828 is unquestionably proof. Doesn't mean I have a problem with some of the earlier things we call proof being called proof. They are what they are, and they're definitely special, so call them whatever you like.
Now, as far as the above four coins are concerned:
The 1834 Quarter is an no-questions proof.
The 1833 CLE Half is also an obvious proof, but it was struck a few years later.
All 1827 "Original" (B-1) Quarters were struck in an open collar are probably just PL.
I've never seen an 1829 Half that I considered an unquestionable proof.
Wait, I'm sorry, what was the question?
Andy Lustig
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
@currin you mentioned you dont know the recent history of the 1842-c liberty quarter eagle. My notes show that back in August 2016 it was for sale by a well known dealer listed at $215,000. Another dealer offered it shortly thereafter for $190,000. Then the coin was again offered by the initial dealer for $159,500 around Feb 2017. The coin then went up in price by the same dealer around March 2019 for $185,000. The coin looks like it now has a home for quite awhile.
Just a few weeks ago, the “exceedingly rare” 1827 Half Dollar O-121 was highlighted. The coin was a new addition to the D.L. Hansen Collection of extremely rare and difficult set of early half dollar proofs. A few days ago, a member posted a handful of early proofs here on the Hansen thread. I am still not sure the purpose of the post being they were not Hansen coins. This is a public thread and I believe the freedom to post anything as long as it does not violate our host rules. So, I welcome these posts, because sometimes they motivate me to dig a little deeper. Looking at the 1829 Proof Half Dollar in the grouping, I immediately recognized the coin as the Dr. Charles Link PR64 Specimen. When searching the Hansen sets, I found that he just updated a couple of his sets with a new proof. My research lead me to find two 1829 Proof Half Dollars in the Hansen Collection, with the most recent one an under grade of the original specimen.
If you have been watching my posting for an awhile, you have noticed that I like to tell the “story” about the coin. Most condition census coins have a story to tell. In some cases, there is a story that can be told about the coins immediate family, especially when the coin is from a small family. The early proofs are from small families. The 1829 Proof Half Dollar is from a small family of five to eight coins. Coins Facts give the mintage of eight. The finest graded coin in the family is the Elder-Ryder-Raymond-Pittman PR66 NGC. In a 2013 Heritage sale of this coin, the auctioneer wrote: In his catalog description of the Pittman Collection, David Akers reported that this coin may be the only existing proof example of the O-107 die marriage. Perhaps only three other proof half dollars of this date are known, including the Norweb O-108 and O-112 half dollars, and an O-111 variety certified PR63 by NGC. There may be only four total 1829 proof half dollars, and each one appears to be a different variety. This is the finest proof known for the date.
Since the writing of the description, the fifth (a second O-108) specimen has surfaced which I will call the prodigal daughter. The little girl left home early in life and went aboard where she lived for nearly two centuries. In a fall 2013 Heritage sale, it was written: This is the same variety as the first Norweb 1829 proof half dollar. That collection also had a proof example of O-112. Until the present piece made its debut appearance to the numismatic community, five proof examples of the 1829 half dollar were known, and each was a different variety. The present Gem proof is the second proof identified from the O-108 die pair. Only one of the now six known proofs is finer than this piece. Actually, I believe there are two finer.
Well, you can quickly see the Heritage count is off my one. Heritage’s description between January 2013 to September 2013, includes an O-106 specimen. Although included in the Heritage roster, I cannot confirm the uncertified O-106 proof specimen that sold in Bowers and Merena sale in 1985 as lot 2628. The newly certified fifth coin from abroad was from the Noblesse Collection. It is said that the coin was obtained by a European noble while visiting this country in the middle 19th century and retained by the same family until the present time. The coin was certified as the Second Finest Proof 1829 PR65 NGC. The coin was crossed to PR64+ PCGS and currently resides in the Coinbert Registry Collection. It is a PCGS POP 1/1 described by owner as: A wickedly toned lavender and teal O-108 proof half dollar. If only this coin could tell us all the great collections it has resided in over the last two centuries. Only 4 proof 1829 half dollars have been graded by PCGS.
The roster that I assembled from Coin Facts and auctions confirms five known specimens. There are three other unique specimens that have not been certified or comfirmed. Lastly, I have noted the Eliasberg SP specimen which is probably a prooflike that should not be counted as a proof. The following is my roster of the known Proof Half Dollars of 1829:
1. Pittman Specimen, PR66 NGC, O-107, Thomas Elder's 67th Sale (10/1912); Hillyer Ryder (1945); Wayte Raymond; New Netherlands 50th Sale (12/1957), lot 588; John Jay Pittman (David Akers, 5/1998), lot 1491, where it realized $46,750; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/1999), lot 6741, unsold; Sebring Collection (American Numismatic Rarities 1/2004), lot 1473; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2007), lot 974, where it brought $69,000; The Greensboro Collection / US Coin FUN Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2013), Lot 5634, Realized $58,750.
2. Hansen / Norweb Specimen, PR65 PCGS, CAC, O-108, Norweb Collection, Part III (Bowers & Merena 11/1988 as PR63) Lot 3095, Realized $16,500; FUN US Coin Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2014 as PR64 PCGS) Lot 5247, Realized $102,812.50 (Auction Record); Private Transaction (NFC 3/2017), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. Coinbert Specimen, PR64+ PCGS, O-108, The Noblesse Collection / US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 9/2013 as PR65 NGC ) Lot 6433, Realized $55,813; Coinbert Registry Collection.
4. Link Specimen, PR64 PCGS, O.111a, The Globus/Shulman Auction (Stack's, 12/1998 as PR63 NGC), lot 1362; 71st Anniversary Sale (Stack's, 10/2006), lot 2755, Realized $21,850; Rosemont CSNS Signature & Platinum Night US Coin Auction (Heritage 4/2011), lot 5146, Realized $48,875; Pre-Long Beach Auction - U.S. Coins (Goldberg 2/2013) lot 1321, Realized $42,550; CSNS US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 4/2017 as PR63 NGC, CAC) lot 4048, Realized $39,950; Dr. Charles Link Registry Collection as PR64 PCGS.
5. Hansen / Norweb Specimen, O-112, Small Letters, Proof-63 PCGS, (Hollinbeck Coin December 1954), lot 730; Mrs. R. Henry Norweb; Norweb Collection, Part III (Bowers and Merena 11/1988), lot 3097, Realized $5,720; Russell J. Logan & Gilbert G. Steinberg Collections (Bowers and Merena 11/2002 as PR63 NGC), lot 1463, Realized $16,100; US Coin Signature Auction (Heritage 7/2008, lot 1687, Realized 25,300; Rarities Night (Stacks Bowers 3/2021), lot 4100, Realized $60,000; Private Transaction (DLRC 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
6. Unique Specimen, Proof Uncertified, O-111 US & Foreign Sale (Sotheby's 12/1998), lot 266, Realized $19,800. No Auction appearance in 20 years.
7. Unique Specimen, PR66 Uncertified, O106, Bowers and Merena (1/1985), lot 2628. No Auction appearance in 35 years.
8. Unique Specimen, Proof Uncertified, O.105, Phillip G. Strauss Collection, sold privately, seen by Walter Breen in 1951. No auction appearance known.
Note: Eliasberg Specimen, George H. Earle (Henry Chapman, 6/1912), lot 2936; J.M. Clapp; John H. Clapp; Clapp Estate (privately via Stack's 1942); Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; Eliasberg Collection (Bowers and Merena April 1997), Lot 1852; Westmoreland Collection of Early Bust Halves (Heritage, January, 2008 as SP63 NGC), Lot 2872; realized $13,800. In the 1997 Eliasberg catalog, the coin was headlined as “Notable 1829 O-111 Half Dollar, Chapman: Proof”. Although, in the description, it was described as: MS63 Prooflike, called a Proof by Henry Chapman. This coin should not be counted in the proof rosters.
D.L. Hansen Collection at 25% complete for this 24-piece early half dollar collection. The 1829 PR65 Cert #28748307 is CAC Approved, POP 1/0, finest certified by PCGS from the Norweb Collection. This purchase adds the second 1829 PR65 Half Dollar. There are no PCGS sets that will accept both coins, even though they are two different die varieties. This purchase reunites the sisters as they appeared in Norweb Collection for many years.
1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar. O-112, Small Letter, Proof-63, Unique for Die State, Ex: Norweb
Of the eight minted, this coin is the lowest graded of the four certified by PCGS, POP 1/3. The other Hansen-Norweb Specimen in the sole finest PCGS POP 1/0 specimen. Between the two Hansen coins are the Coinbert POP 1/1 and the Link POP 1/2. We discussed a few weeks ago there is one other serious early half dollar proof player, “Dr. Duke”. He does not have the 1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar Proof. If the Pittman PR66 NGC Specimen will cross, it would make a great addition to the Duke Collection. Is Legend’s Black Cat a fifth player? I don’t know because the creature are very nocturnal by nature.
The Hansen 1829 Proof-63 Half Dollar has appeared in modern auctions four times. One of the more recent appearance was the Bowers and Merena, 11/1988 sale of the Norweb Collection, Part III. Prior sale, the coin is attributed as a Hollinbeck Coin that sold in December 1954. In the Norweb sale, the coin appeared in lot 3097 as PR63 and realized $5,720. The coin sold in auction with her Norweb sister that was in lot 3095. The sister coin realized $16,500 also as a PR63. Both carried the same grade in auction, but buyer’s interests were significant different. The next appearance was again in a Bowers & Merena sale. The sale was contributed to Russell J. Logan & Gilbert G. Steinberg Collections. In this 11/2002 sale, the coin realized $16,100 as a PR63 NGC.
The last appearance was a Stacks Bowers sale a couple months ago in March 2021. The coin was highlighted as: Unique Proof 1829 O-112 Half Dollar, The Norweb Specimen, 1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar, O-112, Unique as a Proof, Small Letters. Proof-63 (PCGS). It was described as: An old friend, this is the third time that we have had the privilege of bringing this significant rarity to auction. The first was in our (Bowers and Merena's) November 1988 sale of the Norweb Collection, Part III, where we described it as: "1829 O-112. Proof-63. Mostly brilliant surfaces change to a whisper of light gold at the borders. The Proof surface is interrupted by a few areas of semi-frost on the obverse. The reverse is full Proof throughout, including within the shield stripes. The overall aspect is superb, and the coin stands as one of the finest Proof representatives of this date and variety."
Although all five known specimens are sisters, the auctioneer conjects they are not twins born on the same day: The 1829 half dollar is exceedingly rare in this format. Once again, the mintage is unknown, although undoubtedly limited. With specimens of the Proof 1829 confirmed from the O-107, O-108, O-111a and O-112 die pairings, the Mint obviously received orders for these special coins on separate occasions throughout the year. The experts at PCGS CoinFacts account for just six to eight Proofs extant from all die marriages, the example offered here the only one of the Overton-112 variety. An impressive provenance further enhances the significance and desirability of this captivating specimen.
I am not sure why Mr. Hansen chose to add this coin to his collection when he already had the finest PCGS specimen. I do not believe the coin was purchased by Mr. Hansen directly in the Stacks Bowers Auction. Due to the delay timing in the update, I believe the coin was purchased privately from David Lawrence Rare Coins. The two Norweb coins have a look that they do belong together. I can certainly imagine them stored together and in the same manner. Images for the two Hansen Proofs, you be the judge.
The Basic set of Capped Bust Halves is a popular set, requiring only 33 coins. Only a few are moderately scarce; the 1815/2, the 1839-O and the 1807. However none of these will present a major challenge as just over a dozen Set Registry participants have completed this set. - PCGS Registry
We recent saw an Early Proof Half Dollar, today let’s take a closer look at a mint state. The last update for early half dollars was about a year ago when I featured the 1807 Bearded Goddess. In fact the last few updates for early half dollars have been for major variety coins. The Capped Bust Half Dollars Basic, Circulation Strikes (1807-1839) Set is not one of Mr. Hansen’s strongest series. I would contribute the lack of success directly to the strong competition in this series. You have to start with Dr. Charles Link, PCGS Hall of Fame Collector with more than three decades of building an early half dollar set that marvels even the legendary Brett Pogue half dollars. Dr. Link’s accomplishments extend beyond the basic set. In the PCGS bio, his half dollars are described as: This set receives our highest honor this year with its induction into the PCGS Set Registry Hall of Fame. With a daunting 610 coins needed for completion this set this set achieves an incredible 97.05% completeness with an amazing grade average of 58.95! The set includes both die states of the very rare 1817/4 including the finest known example. The commitment needed to assemble a set of this magnitude is very impressive and serves as an example of one of the most difficult challenges in U.S. Coin collections. Chuck is a true CBH nut! His passion and commitment are amazing. As great as his collection is he isn't done yet and has more surprises in store for us!
“The Link Early American Silver Date Set of Lettered and Reeded Edge Capped Bust Half Dollars” consist only 33 coins and each one is an amazing handpicked condition census beauty. If that is not enough, there are two other strong players in this series: Mr. Perfection and the Chicago Collection. So, you can see nice condition census PCGS specimens are difficult to coins to come by. Currently, the D.L. Hansen Collection is #6 on the all-time finest PCGS registry for the set.
The Hansen set is nice set. The PCGS grade range is from choice MS63 to select GEM MS67. With this purchase, the set has two coins tied for finest, 1826 MS67, POP 3/0 and this new addition, 1810 50C MS66, POP 2/0. Let’s learn a little more about this coin.
1810 Capped Bust Half Dollars, MS66
The mintage for the coin is 1,276,276 which sound like a lot. Coin Facts estimates 4500 survived in all grades with 120 in mint grade. The survival for GEM is where it becomes very difficult. Coin Facts estimates 4. I believed there are at least five proven worthy of the GEM status. PCGS has certified three: 1-MS65 and 2-MS66. NGC has certified a ten, 7-MS65 and 3-MS66. Many of them are duplicates I would assume. Coin Facts Condition Census reports five GEMS, the three PCGS coins and two MS66 NGC coins from the Louis Eliasberg Collection. The following is a roster of the five GEM condition coins. With the Hansen purchase, all three of the PCGS GEMs are now in strong registry sets.
1. Link/Green/Newman Specimen, MS66 PCGS, CAC, O-108, "Colonel" E.H.R. Green Collection; Partnership of Eric P. Newman & Burdette G. Johnson (St. Louis Stamp & Coin Co.); Eric P. Newman, who paid $5; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society (Heritage 11/2013 as MS66 NGC, CAC) lot 33440, Realized $64,625 (Auction Record); Dr. Charles Link (PCGS HOF Registry Collection).
3. Coinbert Specimen, MS66 PCGS, O-110, Douglas L. Noblet Collection (Bowers & Merena 1/1999 as MS64 PCGS) lot 19) Realized $5,980; Long Beach Signature Sale (Heritage 10/2001) lot 6555, realized $4,945; Baltimore, MD. Signature Sale (Heritage 7/2003 as MS65 NGC) lot 7379, Realized $7,188; Classics Sale (ANR 1/2004) lot 464, Realized $5,980; Larry Hanks, sold privately (3/2004) D. Brent Pogue Collection; The D. Brent Pogue Collection, Part II (Stacks Bowers 9/15 as MS65 PCGS) lot 2009, realized $25,850; Chicago (PCGS Registry Set)
4. Eliasberg Specimen, MS66 NGC, O-108, George H. Earle, Jr. Collection; Henry Chapman 6/1912; John H. Clapp Collection, sold intact in 1942 to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr., Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. (Bowers & Merena 4/1997) lot 1711, Realized $9,075; West Palm Beach, FL (Summer FUN) Signature Coin Auction (Heritage 6/2008 as MS66 NGC) Lot 978; Realized $18,400.
5. Eliasberg/Kaufman Specimen, MS66 NGC PCGS, O-106a, George H. Earle, Jr. Collection; Henry Chapman 6/1912; - John H. Clapp Collection, sold intact in 1942 to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection (Bowers & Merena 4/1997) lot 1712, Realized $16,500; Phil Kaufman Collection; The Joseph C. Thomas Collection (Heritage 4/2009) lot 2407, Realized $17,250, (Heritage 8/2010) lot 3143,not sold.
The providence is not known for this coin as it for the other four GEMs. I am sure some additional research could turn up something, but I was not able to find anything in recent auctions. I believe the coin was purchased in a private transaction from a company listed on eBay as “The Best Treasures for You”. It appears to be a store that only does business on eBay. The ask price in the eBay listing was $59,500. In the listing information, the coin die state was attributed to O-101, which makes all five the 1810 GEMs unique. The coin replaces a Hansen labeled MS64, POP 17/4. The Hansen set will need more upgrades to continue to make positive movement in the rankings.
Provenance: Purchased in a Private Transaction (4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection
1810 Capped Bust Half Dollars, MS66 PCGS POP 2/0, Tied with finest known Certification #38327129, PCGS #6095 PCGS Price Guide $50,000 / Unknown, private purchased
It appears whenever Mr. Hansen has a thirst for a Morgan, he circles back to Stuppler & Company for a little satisfaction. It is no doubt the Stuppler / Hansen connection is strong. The relationship dates back to the origins of the collection about five years ago. With Barry Stuppler handling the sale of the Illinois Collection of Morgan Dollars, he has a nice supply on his website. A quick search today of Illinois coins resulted in 54 hits. With the Illinois set retiring on 2/12/2020 after reaching the runner-up spot all-time, the liquidation of the coins have taken more than a year. That may not be all that bad, because Barry Stuppler reported the set was assembled over 14 years. The remaining 54 coins are priced from $10,000 to $790,000. There are still more that 18 six figure coins available. I have often wondered why Mr. Hansen is not more aggressive with purchasing the Illinois coins. By purchasing one at a time, we will be watching this for a long time to come.
Also at times, Mr. Hansen will take a drink from another well, which happened recently. He purchased a Morgan Dollar from Larry Shapiro Rare Coin. The 1883-O MS67+ CAC Approved coin is not that rare and expensive. The asked price on the website was $7,495. The coin recently sold in Heritage Central States US Coins Signature Auction in April 2021. The coin realized $6,300. Without knowing how close the ask price was to the amount that Mr. Hansen paid, it appear Mr. Shapiro made in the neighborhood of $1,000. With this purchase, The D.L. Hansen Collection replaces a MS67 non-CAC specimen that was purchase in Legend Rare Coin Auctions, 9/2018.
The Hansen 97-piece Morgan Dollars Basic, Circulation Strikes (1878-1921) Set is currently the best set in the Registry. In a few days, it should receive the 2021 best in registry award for the first time. I doubt it will be the last. I don’t see any urgency by Mr. Hansen to move up in the All-Time Finest rankings with Jack Lee, Illinois Set, and the Coronet Collection out front.
We should see the set continue to improve. I would not be surprise to see Mr. Hansen take another drink from the Barry Stuppler well of Illinois Morgan Dollars.
1894 Morgan Dollar MS65+, CAC, Ex: Illinois Set
The mintage for the coin is 110,000. Coin Facts estimates 8,990 survived in all grades with 6,490 in mint grade. Coin Facts estimate 125 is the survival for GEM. That sounds like a lot, but is certainly not enough to cover the thirst of the Morgan Collectors. The basic PCGS registry has almost 1000 (978) sets in the registry. How many Morgan set collectors outside the registry is unknown and hard to imagine.
Expect Q. David Bowers stated: The 1894 dollar has the lowest circulation strike mintage of any Morgan dollar except the 1893-S (not including the 1895). As such, they have always been popular with collectors. Although quantities of Mint State coins existed in the 1950s and early 1960s, nearly all have been dispersed by now. Among Philadelphia Mint Morgan dollars, the 1894 is the second rarest (after 1901) in Mint State. Examples are offered for sale with regularity, but in the modern market it is seldom that even a small group is found. Most coins are in lower Mint State ranges. The demand for the latter is softened somewhat by the availability of high-grade Proofs. The striking quality of Mint State 1894 Morgan dollars ranges from average to sharp. The lustre on most well-struck pieces is frosty and attractive. On the other hand, average to below average coins are apt to have weak breast feathers on the eagle, and have unsatisfactory lustre. Due this low availability, Expert Ron Guth warned: BEWARE OF ALTERED COINS WITH REMOVED MINTMARKS.
There are six PCGS coins graded finer than the Hansen/Illinois MS65+ Specimen. The top coin is a MS66+ specimen from the Jack Lee 2 Collection. The coin resided in Coronet Collection before being offered by Legend Rare Coin in 2015, the coin realized $152,750 (Auction Record). The coin currently is one of the centerpieces in the Wurt Collection (PCGS Set Registry). Next, there is a five-coin group of MS66 specimens. They are almost six figure coins ($95,000 according to the PCGS Price Guide).
As stated, the coin was purchased from Barry Stuppler at Mint State Gold (MSG).The ask for the coin was $46,000. The coin replaces a MS64 with POP of 288/67. No question this was a nice and much needed upgrade. We have a long hot summer coming, so let’s see if Mr. Hansen gets thirsty again.
Provenance: Illinois Set Collection (PCGS Set Registry), offered by Barry Stuppler (Mint State Gold 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1894 Morgan Dollar MS65+ PCGS POP 6/6, CAC Approved Certification #37728252, PCGS #7228 PCGS Value Guide: $40,000 / Asked $46,000 Ex: Illinois Set
Comparable in overall rarity to the 1849-C and equally difficult to obtain in choice condition. Generally underrated as a rarity (as are most quarter eagles) and any specimen better than EF should be considered highly desirable. Always softly struck on the eagle's legs and on the feathers of the arrows. - David Akers (1975/88)
A few days ago, I posted an update on the Charlotte Quarter Eagle series. That coin was considered "The finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.". Naturally, the coin cannot be topped, but Dell Loy Hansen can still continue to improve the set. The Charlotte Gold $2-1/2 Basic, Circulation Strikes (1838-1860) Registry Set requires 19 coins. The Hansen Collection is a lone wolf for this set. The set was created in June 2018 and was complete at time of creation. In the three years, there have been only four coins upgraded. Oddly enough, two of them took place in the past few weeks.
The set is still short of having a GPA weight of at least 60. The current rating is 59.84. The set range from AU55 to the coin reported a couple weeks ago, the MS65 1842-C quarter eagle. Of the 19 coins, two are PCGS POP 1/0 (10.5%), with three others tied for finest. Therefore, more than 25% of the set is from the top of the PCGS population report. Another eight coins are PCGS POP Top Five. This makes more the 68% of the set condition census. Six coins are outside the top five, with the 1838-C $2.50 AU55, POP 17/21 bring the best candidate for upgrading. According to Coin Facts rarity and survival estimates report, there should be at least eight in mint state grade. This is the link to see the 19 coin set,
The new 1850-C $2.50 MS62 coin should be a solid condition census top five. The top grade coins are a pair of MS63 in the NGC report. Only one is known and confirmed. Could the second NGC MS62 be a duplicate? Or could it now be in PCGS holder, maybe the MS62+? Or a legitimate second choice specimen that has not shown up in auction? One of the NGC MS63 is from the Charleston Collection and appeared in American Numismatic Rarities Auction, September 2005. This was from The C.L. Lee Sale and the coin realized $25,300. The coin could be the sole finest 1850-C $2.50 but cannot confirm. It does not appear to have been seen in the past 15 years.
In the PCGS report, the new Hansen coin is tied for the second finest. The PCGS finest certified is a MS62+ specimen that was offered in Stack’s Bowers November 2012 Baltimore sale. The coin was offered with a reserved of $32,000. The coin was passed, and has not reappeared in 18 years.
1850-C Charlotte Liberty Quarter Eagle MS62, POP 4/1
Expert Doug Winter wrote: The 1850-C is less rare than its relatively low mintage figure suggests. It is the second most available Charlotte quarter eagle from the 1850s. It is usually seen well worn and is rare in properly graded Uncirculated. The 1850-C quarter eagle is typically found in VF and EF grades. It is scarce in properly graded AU and most at this level are no better than AU50. This is a rare coin in the higher AU grades and very rare in Uncirculated with an estimated four to six examples currently believed to exist.
Coin Facts estimates 160 in all grades, with only seven in mint condition, with none greater than Choice MS63. PCGS does not have a choice coin in their holder. They have graded 1-MS60, 7-MS61, 4-MS62, and the sole finest MS62+, totaling 13 coins, with possible resubmissions. NGC POP report has 1-MS60, 11-MS61, 1-MS62, and 2-MS63, totaling 15 coins. Are there 28 induvial coins in holders? With current Coin Facts report estimating only seven in mint condition, the two sources just don’t align.
After reviewing images from current auctions, I was only able to trace one past appearance to the Hansen coin. It appeared in Heritage’s ANA US Coins Signature Auction in Chicago in 8/2014. The NGC MS61 coin was headlines as “Semiprooflike Fields”. The Variety is stated as being the scarcer of the two known varieties. The auctioneer described the coins as: The 1850-C is among the more available C-mint quarter eagles from the 1850s, but is still itself elusive, as only 175 to 225 examples are believed to survive in all grades. Most extant pieces exhibit light to moderate wear, and pieces grading AU or finer are seldom seen. Winter estimates as few as four to six truly Uncirculated examples exist today which, if at all accurate, reveals the certified population data to be highly inflated. This representative exhibits bright green-gold color overall, with a degree of semiprooflike mirroring in the fields. Scattered abrasions define the grade, and the central devices show a touch of the usual softness.
The other MS61, Cert# 38196278, may have been purchased in Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles Auction at Pre-Long Beach U.S. & World Coin sale. In the June 2020 auction, the coin realized $12,000. I certainly would not be surprised if the coin was purchased through David Lawrence Rare Coins after the auction. The coin is currently available for purchase on the DRLC website, but still show in as active coin in the Hansen sets. The coin can be viewed in set named Diana's Set of Liberty Quarter Eagles. https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/alltimeset/163531
The MS62 specimen was offered on the Rare Coin Wholesaler website in March 2021. The ask on the coin was $26,000. More recently, the coin was offered on David Lawrence Rare Coin website with the listed price of $29,500. The reduced price asked was $28,615. It appears the coin was purchased by a private transaction with DLRC. Will this coin be the last 1850-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle purchased for this collection. I am not sure, because there are maybe two or three coins better. With no plans to sale this collection, we could see a new specimen before the collection is sold maybe decades in the future.
Provenance: ANA US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 8/2014 as MS61 NGC), lot 3761, realized $8,879.48; Private Transaction (DLRC 5/2021 as MS63 PCGS), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1850-C Charlotte Liberty Quarter Eagle MS62 PCGS POP 4/1, “Semiprooflike Fields” Certification #25602735, PCGS #7756 PCGS Price Guide Value: $25,000 / Private Transaction
"The Proof 1878 Liberty Head quarter eagle is another favorite date of the series, with just about 10 examples known today. Two examples are in the museum collections of the Smithsonian and the ANS. The chance to purchase this date in Proof rarely occurs. The last examples offered at auction were from the collections of Byron Reed, John Jay Pittman, and Harry W. Bass. The Pittman coin sold for $29,700 in 1998. Pittman purchased the coin from New Netherlands in 1948 for $55. Pittman was famous for purchasing less-famous, but very rare, coins when others did not appreciate them." - Garrett and Guth, few years ago
This past week we have seen a new addition to the collectable proof gold coins in the D.L. Hansen Collection. I call the collector set of gold proofs (1859-1915). Although as I have stated before, the 294-piece collection can be completed, there have not be much evidence that it has happen. Actually, in researching the complete set of this makeup, I have not found a collection or collector that has achieved this difficult feat. I am not saying there is not one from the past or present, and I will continue to look. Just at this point, I have not turned one up. Even the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian institute comes up short. The Collection have an amazing compete set of Liberty Head Double Eagles, but only 93.55% complete for the One Dollar Gold. Ed Trompeter , Hall of Fame for his Gold Proofs, was complete for the eight of the sets that I show below, including the Four Dollar Stellas, but it appear he may not have been complete for three of the Liberty Head Sets, including Half Eagles, Eagles, and Double Eagles. Since the last time I posted this information, I have not found any evidence to dispute the information.
Louis Eliasberg had one of the greatest sets of proof gold, but the collection was mixed with proof and mint strikes. It appears the ratio of the mix was about 85% proof to 15% mint strike. Harry W. Bass, another Hall of Fame Collection known for Gold did not have a compete run of proof gold from 1859-1915. I took a look at the William Cutter Atwater’s catalog. He had very nice runs of Proof Gold starting in 1859, but there were a few pieces here and there that were mint strikes. For example, the Liberty Head Double Eagles were complete proof, except for 1862 in fine condition, 1877 and 1878 brilliant uncirculated condition.
As I have stated before and probably again in the future, PCGS does not have a set to represent this 294-piece collectable gold proof set. I think it would make a beautiful display if Hansen or someone else completes the set someday. Also, it would be nice if PCGS would create registry set. I created the chart below from Registry sets that would comprise the gold set.
So, as you can see, The D.L. Hansen Collection is well on the way for completing this set. With this addition, the set improves to 71.77% complete. For the Bass, Eliasberg, Atwater collection, I think you will find them to be 85-90%. In the Hansen Collection, the number of coins still needed have decreased to 83. This is a four coin decrease from the last time that I provided this update. Three of the new additions are the three eagles purchased from the Gerald Forsythe Collection of PCGS Indian Head Proof Eagles. The three eagle additions were: 1909, 1913, and 1914. This fourth addition is not near that caliber of a coin. The quarter eagle is outside the condition census ream, but is an important and seemly hard specimen to obtain. Let’s take a look at the 1878 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle.
1878 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle, PR62
The official mintage give for this coin is 20. Coin Facts gives the Rarity and Survival Estimates at 12 for all grades. There are three GEMs survivors according to Coin Facts, with maybe one less than PR60. This would place the new Hansen PR62 near the bottom of the population chart. Surely that is true, but credit must be given that the mintage and survival are fairly low. According to expert David Akers): Proofs are extremely rare and the 1878 is, in fact, the rarest post-1859 quarter eagle in proof. At least I know of fewer examples of this date than of any other proof after 1859. I would estimate that only half a dozen or so remain in unimpaired condition, most of which are impounded in museums or prominent collections. Note: All 1878 proof gold is extremely rare even though the reported mintage is similar to that for some other years. Perhaps some of the sets were not sold and were subsequently melted. This was written several decades ago, but the difficulty of the coin remains today.
Since the Eliasberg sale in 1982, the coin has appeared in auction only 17 times. By my math, that is about one time every 28 months. The new Hansen coin appeared in auction last month. The last time before was a July 2019 Heritage Auction where a PR62DAM was sold. One of the top coins (PR65 Deep Cameo) appeared in a Heritage 2018 Auction and realized $52,800 (Auction Record). Is this coin unappreciated?
The coin cannot be traced to any of the auctions prior to the May 2021 David Lawrence Rare Coins Auction. It is possible the coin could be from the 1993 Floyd T. Starr or the 1996 Byron Reed Auctions. Of the 16 appearances, these two cannot be verified due to lack of images and grading. It is more than likely, the coin does not trace to any modern auctions.
The 1878 PR62 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle was obtained in David Lawrence Rare Coin Internet Auction #1167 held on Sunday, May 2, 2021. The coin was described as: A beautiful and extremely uncirculated proof survivor from a mintage of just twenty pieces. Impeccably struck design elements standout nicely against bright, yellow-gold mirrors. Lovely reflectivity and subtle orange tints along the peripherals. A simple description for a simple rare proof issue. The coin realized $17,500 with PCGS price guide value of $21,000. The coin has found a current home in the D.L. Hansen Collection, but it will be interesting to see how long. The coin is the lowest graded coin in 49-piece Liberty Head $2-1/2 Gold, Proof (1859-1907) set. This certainly places the coin at high risk to be taken out of the game.
The 1878 PCGS PR 62 QE is a nice pick up by Hansen. If there are 12 survivors, by definition it is rare. Factor in that 2 are in museums and one graded by PCGS is 55. That takes it down to 9 available. I bought the only 1878 graded cameo that sold in the Heritage auction in July 2019. I bought at $18,600 which I thought was quite the value for one of the rarest post 1859 proof quarter eagles and mine was CAC approved to boot.
Yes, I think the pcgs pr65 dcam that sold for 52k was very very much underappreciated and my hunch is we will not see that coin in a long time. I think Hansen was smart to pick up his example while he could and at a fair price since quite frankly we may not see another one sold in quite awhile.
The cents of 1821 are unusual for the period in that just two die marriages are known. Both are individually rather common, but they make for a relatively small population of this date overall. The higher prices for 1821 cents are reflective of this scarcity. – NGC Explorer
The 1821 is a fascinating EAC issue. I have enjoyed compiling this information. I have spent more time than normal, but it certainly was fun. The 1821 cent has a interesting story as told by Stacks Bowers: About 1981, a building in Boston was renovated or razed, revealing a cornerstone from its initial construction in 1821. Within the cornerstone were no less than seven cents, placed inside when they were brand new and preserved ever since. All seven were sold in New England Rare Coin Galleries' sale of October 1981, lots 58 through 64, each graded Mint State and aside from some spotting retaining abundant mint color. As noted in Q. David Bowers' American Coin Treasures and Hoards, where the Boston Cornerstone Find is described on pp. 96-97, "adding to their appeal was the appreciation of the 1821 cent as the second scarcest of the late [sic] date large cents." Most of the seven pieces have remained off the market since the 1981 NERCG sale and, indeed, the present example (Hansen new purchase) is making only its third auction appearance since its rediscovery in the Boston cornerstone. The 1991 Noyes census cites this coin as tied for CC#4, and Wright likewise names this coin among the four best of the variety. This date is well recognized as a challenge above EF, and those collectors lucky enough to have fully AU pieces in their cabinets are few in number. This lovely Choice Uncirculated example, with a storied past and most of its original color, would be a highlight in any large cent collection.
Goldberg wrote in 2/2020 about the Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen: A great cent, and it comes with an interesting story. It was discovered along with six others of the date (two of the N-1 variety, four of the N-2 variety) hidden in the cornerstone of an old building being demolished in Boston in 1981. Each was sold in a New England Rare Coin Auctions (NERCA) Long Beach sale in October of that year, lots 58-64. Collector Garry F. Fitzgerald purchased six of the seven 1821 cents.
I was able to identify five of Garry F. Fitzgerald six purchased coins. Seven of the top eight coins on my list are from this discovery. I have been able to confirm only one legacy coin that grades with RB/RD designation. The coin is in the Arizona Registry. The coin is graded MS64RB PCGS and CAC Approved. It can be traced back to the Chapmans and the turn of the 19th century. It is a little surprising that it appear the Brett Pogue Registry set was missing the issue. I have organized my Top Ten list by color designation. Let’s start with the RD Specimens.
RD Specimens – 4 Known
1. High Desert Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #13053257, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 63; Tony Terranova (via Del Bland); Pre-Long Beach Auction #51 / Ted Naftzger Collection Part II, (Goldberg Auctioneers 2/ 2009), Lot #116 realized $39,100, High Desert Registry Set.
2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 58; Garry F. Fitzgerald (Bowers & Merena 8/9/1999) lot 22; Manuel Ahumada Collection (includes the Bowers lot ticket); Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 53; realized $38,188.
3. Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #37128539, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981),Lot 61; Garry Fitzgerald 3/17/2006; Douglas F. Bird Collection, Pre-Long Beach U.S. & World Coin Auction #115 (Goldberg Auctioneers 2/2020), Lot 157, realized $30,000.
4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 64; Gary Fitzgerald; Robert Michael Prescott Collection Sale (American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006 as MS63 RD PCGS), Lot 34, realized $43,700; Keusch, Snow, & Del Zorro Collections Sale, (Stack's 11/2008), lot 3074, realized $70,000 (Auction Record); Rarities Night, featuring the ESM Collection (Stacks Bowers 8/2020 as MS-63 RD PCGS), Lot 1078, Realized $26,400, Dr. Charles Link Collection.
All four of the known RD designated 1821 Large Cents are from the cornerstone in Boston hoard. Also, all four are current certified by PCGS, and there is not a RD example in the NGC population report. In recent auctions, they have been seen six times. The Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen has made three of the six appearances, with the other three only once. Three of the four are graded MS64RD, the Link Specimen grading MS63RD. The Link Specimen holds the auction record of $70,000 from a 2008 Stacks Auction. Two of the four specimens can be found in registry sets: The Link specimen and the MS64RD in the High Desert Registry Set. Three of the four coins are the Newcomb 2 variety. The Fitzgerald / Ahumada MS64RD Specimen is the sole Newcomb 1 variety that can found is red.
RB Specimens – 4 Known
5. Arizona Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #83244992, The Chapmans-John G. Mills, (S. H. & H. Chapman 4/27/1904), lot 1306; Chapmans 11/1904; Allison W. Jackman, Jackman Estate (Henry Chapman 6/28/1918) Lot 754; S. H. Chapman (for $100); Dr. Henry W. Beckwith (S. H. Chapman 4/27/1923) Lot 60; S. H. Chapman; unknown; Teletrade; ANA Sale (Heritage, 8/1996), lot 6526; Manuel Ahumada Collection; Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 54; realized $38,30,550; Arizona Registry Set.
6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, Cert #36087812, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 60; private collector; Robert Michael Prescott Collection Sale (American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006 as MS64RB PCGS), lot 35, Realized $18,400; Collection of Thaddeus A. Tatum III / ANA Rarities Night, (Stacks Bowers 8/2018 as MS63RB PCGS Cert #03649687), Lot 1056, Realized $28,800; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 6/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
7. Fitzgerald Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS63+RB PCGS, Cert #26634175, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 59; Garry Fitzgerald. Note: The pedigree after Fitzgerald is not certain. Possible link to Pre-Long Beach (Superior Galleries 5/2003 as PCGS MS63RB) Lot 663, realized $14,088 (Not Confirm).
8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS63RB PCGS, Cert #60110319, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 62; Garry Fitzgerald; The Joshua and Ally Walsh Collection of United States Cents / (FUN) Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2006), Lot 3033, Realized $29,900; Cardinal Collection Educational Foundation / Pre-Long Beach Elite Auction (Superior 9/2008), Lot 46; realized $58,650 (Auction Record for RB specimen); Americana Sale (Stacks Bowers 1/2013), Lot 13032, Realized $28,200; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 2/2018), D.L. Hansen Collection.
Three of four of the known RB designated 1821 Large Cents are from the cornerstone in Boston hoard. Before the cornerstone discovery, the Arizona Registry Set MS64RB PCGS, CAC Approved Specimen considered the finest known. In a S. H. Chapman 1923 Auction, the coin was plated and cataloged as the "Finest specimen known." Also, all four are currently certified by PCGS. NGC POP report list only one MS64, a sole MS64RB. This coin has not appeared in auction. It may now be in a PCGS holder. In recent auctions, the RBs have been seen seven times. The D.L. Hansen Duplicate MS63RB Specimen has made three of the seven appearances, with new Hansen MS64RB appearing two times. Arizona Registry Set Specimen appeared in a Goldberg Auction in 2017. There is no evidence that the Fitzgerald Specimen N-1, MS63+RB PCGS Specimen has appeared in auction since the original sale in 1981. Two of the four are graded MS64RB, with the previous mention coin grading MS63+RB. The fourth coin is the Hansen Duplicate MS63RB. Interesting, this coin hold the auction record for RB Specimens, realizing $58,650. Two of the four specimens can be found in D.L. Hansen Collection, with the third in Arizona Registry Set . Only one of the four coins is not registered. As with the RD specimens, three of the four coins are the Newcomb 2 variety.
BN Specimens – 12 TPG Choice MS63 and above
9. Norweb Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64BN, Cert # 35409296, John P. Lyman Collection, (S.H. Chapman 11/1913), lot 459; Dr. C.A. Allenburger Collection, (B. Max Mehl's 3/1948), lot 777; Lee G. Agnew Collection, (Abe Kosoff 12/1952), lot 729; Norweb Collection, Part III, (Bowers and Merena 11/1988), lot 2881; ANA Signature Auction, (Heritage 8/2017 as MS63BN, Cert # 84359479),lot 3888, realized $17,625; Baltimore U.S. Coins Auction (Stacks Bowers 3/2018 as MS63BN, Cert # 84359479), lot 2180, realized $21,600.
10. Dan Holmes Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64BN, Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman, 6/14), lot 1850; Henry C. Hines; Charles Wheeler (Stack's, 1976 ANA), lot 372; Jerry A. Bobbe; R.E. Naftzger, Jr.; George M. Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman 6/24/1914) Lot 1850; Henry C. Hines; Charles Wheeler / ANA Sale (Stack's 1976), lot 372; Jerry Bobbe; R. E. Naftzger, Jr.; Early American Coppers sale (1989), lot 247; Denis W. Loring (12/98); John B. MacDonald; Wes Rasmussen Collection / (FUN) Signature Sale (Heritage 1/13/05 as MS63BN NGC) Lot 3460, realized $11,500; Pre-Long Beach Auction #59 (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2010 as MS63BN PCGS), Lot 152, realized $24,150 (Auction Record for BN specimen); Dane B. Nielsen Collection; Dan Holmes Collection
There are eight coins in the RB/RD designation. I will complete the top ten with two BN Specimens. The Norweb 1821 N-1, MS64BN Specimen is the sole finest graded in BN. There are seven MS63BN PCGS and four MS63BN NGC. I am thinking the actual total is about seven without duplicates. From this grouping, I have chosen the Dan Holmes Specimen to represent the tenth spot. The coin has an impeccable pedigree including R.E. Naftzger, Jr. In addition, the coins hold the auction record for BN Specimens realizing $24,150. There may be other worthy candidates. The registry indicates Louis Eliasberg owned a MS63BN specimen. The top NGC coin to appear in auction is a MS63 Brown, Ex: Naftzger coin from The Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection sold in 2014. So, most of the high grade 1821 Large Cents are found in PCGS holders. A scan through the PCGS registry sets, most coins can be located.
1821 Coronet Head Cent MS64RB, Ex: Robert Michael Prescott
The official mintage given for this coin is 389,000. Coin Facts gives the Rarity and Survival Estimates at 4,000 for BN designation, 20 for RB, and four for RD. The 20 for RB seems high to me. Interesting, there are no GEMs survivors according to Coin Facts. The new Hansen coin is tied with one other as finest with RB designation.
The coin can be traced to the group of seven that was interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, and rediscovered circa 1981. It has not been confirmed if this coin was one of the six purchased by Gary Fitzgerald in the New England Rare Coin auction held on 10/1981. I believe it was in the Fitzgerald Collection, but have not been able to confirm. The coin made its way into Robert Michael Prescott Collection. It was offered in public auction for the second time as MS63RB PCGS in a 2006 American Numismatic Rarities Auction. The last appearance was a 2018 Stacks Bowers Auction from the Thaddeus A. Tatum III Collection. The coin was offered as MS63RB PCGS Cert #03649687, realizing $28,800.
Since the 2018 Stacks Bowers Auction, the coin has been upgraded to a MS64RB PCGS. The coin was recently offered by David Lawrence Rare Coins. The coin was described as: Gorgeous remaining red tints in the obverse fields with bright golden red reverse surfaces. One of the finest in existence for this key date in the middle Large Cent years, a few scattered spots account for the color designation, but we have seen darker, less attractive pieces designated as "Red" in recent years. Tied with 2 other pieces at PCGS as the finest graded. On eBay, the ask price was $44,200 and $44,500 on the Collector’s Corner website. The PCGS Guide Price is $50,000. The coin was purchase by Mr. Hansen in a private transaction.
Provenance: See #6 above.
1821 Coronet Head Cent MS64RB PCGS POP 2/4 Certification #36087812, PCGS #1622 PCGS Coin Guide Value: $50,000 / Unknown Ex: Robert Michael Prescott
Regarding the 1821 Large Cents, I had tracked the 7 hoard coins recently and have some additional info.
-Under number "7. Fitzgerald Specimen", the note "Possible link to Pre-Long Beach (Superior Galleries 5/2003 as PCGS MS63RB) Lot 663, realized $14,088 (Not Confirm)." actually applies to "8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen" as the 2003 coin was lot 62 in the 1981 auction. This can be seen in the catalog posted by the Newman Numismatic Portal:
However, it did make a different auction appearance not listed above. It was in Goldberg's June 2013 Long Beach Coin Auction but was withdrawn. When looking at the auction on their website there is no photo or lot description, only the words WITHDRAWN and UNSOLD by the lot number 405. I did find that the description would show up if doing a search for 1821 within the sale and did a screen capture of that shown below. It even has a photo on the cover of the catalog. So all seven have since appeared in an auction catalog after 1981 if not actually auctioned.
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-Looks like a typo within "6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen". The grade at the "American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006" was PCGS-63 RB rather than MS64RB.
-Not sure if the auction record price for RD is accurate. Under "4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115" it shows "Keusch, Snow, & Del Zorro Collections Sale, (Stack's 11/2008), lot 3074, realized $70,000 (Auction Record)". That is what CoinFacts shows also. The problem is that the paper prices realized for the catalog omit it which should mean it was unsold yet Stack's Bowers online archives show it bringing $80,500 (that would be a $70,000 hammer price which is what CoinFacts shows along with a mysterious grade of NG0). So it is unclear whether Stack's paper PR or the Stack's Bowers website is the correct one. Also not sure where the $70,000 came from as both the paper PR and website include the buyers fee; possibly a reserve hammer that was not met got reported somewhere? Maybe Stack's Bowers can verify if it sold or not.
-The 5. Arizona Registry Set Specimen sold for $18,150 at the listed ANA Sale (Heritage, 8/1996), lot 6526. It also shows $30,550 on Golderg's site for Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 54 rather than the price you show. Got the opportunity to see this one long ago and it was quite nice.
-The 2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991 shows on Golderg's site as UNSOLD for the Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 53 appearance rather than the $38,188 that CoinFacts shows. The Prices Realized for the auction also omit it. Also the (Bowers & Merena 8/9/1999) lot 22 auction appearance brought $10,925 as a raw MS-60. Here is a link to the page showing this lot:
The NuTilt luster in motion views on this coin (the new 6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen) were what I chanced across just before they announced NuTilt. I thought this one came out especially well with the reverse showing how red it is and the toning spot by the F in OF looking far less distracting to me than still photos indicate.
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Here is some of the info from the 1981 catalog, which also included four 1804 Unc Half Cents in the hoard - one is now PCGS-64+ RD and brought $117,500 in 2017. That Half Cent lot states "This coin and the previous three lots were recently discovered during the razing of one of the historic buildings in Boston’s financial district...".
Wonder who had access to original Unc Half Cents minted 17 years earlier unless possibly all the coins were supplied by a bank with old stock on hand. Or possibly they came from two different parts of the same building constructed at different times. Don't recall seeing definitve answers about that.
The 1981 prices realized for the 1821 Large Cents:
Lot 58 $4,675 = the above "2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991"
Lot 59 $6,050 = the above "7. Fitzgerald Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS63+RB PCGS, Cert #26634175"
Lot 60 $4,950 = the above "6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, Cert #36087812"
Lot 61 $6,050 = the above "3. Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #37128539"
Lot 62 $2,310 = the above "8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS63RB PCGS, Cert #60110319"
Lot 63 $3,960 = the above "1. High Desert Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #13053257"
Lot 64 $7,700 = the above "4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115"
The last update on Liberty Double Eagles was a couple months ago. The coin replaced was the 1881 Liberty Double Eagle. I wrote in detail about the incredible D. L. Hansen Collection of Liberty Double Eagles. I hit on the fact that Mr. Hansen purchased the fabulous set from the AWA Collection as the foundation for this collection of Liberty Double Eagles. If you don’t recall the posting, please refer back to March 25, 2021. It may be worth a reread.
Today, I want to touch a little on the S.S. Brother Jonathan Treasure. There is always a mystic feel with treasure coins. The discovery of the S.S. Brother Jonathan was just that, and maybe more. In a recent Stacks Bowers Auction, the story was told as: On Sunday, July 30, 1865, the S.S. Brother Jonathan ran into an uncharted rock during a gale and sank off the coast near Crescent City, California, taking with it 219 people and a substantial golden treasure. In the 1990s, Deep Sea Research, Inc. located the wreck and in a series of exploration dives salvaged 1,207 coins, most of which were 1865-S double eagles. Prior to the discovery, Mint State survivors of this issue were extremely rare. More than 600 of the coins from the S.S. Brother Jonathan treasure are Uncirculated, however, realigning the 1865-S as one of the more available Type I Liberty Head double eagles in Mint State. Since these coins were fist sold at auction in 1999, they have been popular with high grade gold type collectors and double eagle enthusiasts, as well as with collectors of shipwreck treasure.
Heritage provides a little more colorful story that was wrote for an earlier Brother Jonathan coin in a different auction: "When the Brother Jonathan smashed against a large rock and sank on July 30, 1865, off the coast of Crescent City, California, it was not only gold coins that were lost. That may be all that we remember today, but 219 people also slipped beneath the waves. General George Wright, who was to assume his new post at Fort Vancouver; Anson Henry, governor of the Washington Territory; and eight prostitutes (or 'soiled doves' in the contemporary vernacular) were among the more colorful passengers who lost their lives that fateful day. Additionally, $300,000-$500,000 in cargo went down, 346 barrels of whiskey, $200,000 in payroll for U.S. troops at Fort Vancouver, and more than $100,000 in jewelry and cash in the purser's safe. Many of the gold bars carried on the steamship were recovered between 1916 and the early 1930s. But only in the past few years have high-grade double eagles been recovered and entered the numismatic marketplace." I wonder if any of the aged whiskey was recovered?
The S.S. Brother Jonathan was not the only ship carrying gold coins sank in 1865. Both the S.S. Brother Jonathan and the S.S. Republic sank during the crucial year 1865, the last of the Civil War and the next-to-last for the Type One double eagles, those bearing no motto IN GOD WE TRUST above the eagle on the reverse. (HA) A challenge by Stacks Bower to ponder: Try to obtain one double eagle from each of the famous treasure ship discoveries -- the S.S. Brother Jonathan, S.S. Central America, and S.S. Republic, examples of which are actually being offered in this sale! You can read a sketch of each treasure ship in the front pages of A Guide Book of United States Coins, the famous Red Book.
I am not sure if the D.L. Hansen Collection have coins from these three shipwrecks. If someday this collection is cataloged, that would be great to know.
1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65: Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan
With the shipwreck coins, Coin Facts place the rarity and survival estimate at 35 for MS65(GEM) and above. Doug Winter Summary: The 1865-S is another date whose rarity profile was greatly changed by the discovery of shipwrecks; in this case both the S.S. Brother Jonathan and the S.S. Republic which was found around a decade later. It was formerly a rare coin in higher grades but now it is among the most common Type One issues. Prior to the discovery of the Brother Johnathan, it was very hard to locate an 1865-S with good eye appeal. The typical piece was weakly struck on the obverse, densely abraded, and dull. With the addition of hundreds of nice shipwreck coins to the market, there are now many 1865-S double eagles with above-average eye appeal. Over 550 double eagles dated 1865-S were found in the S.S. Brother Jonathan and many were marketed at an auction held by Bowers and Merena in May of 1999. Another major hoard, containing over 200 coins, was found in the S.S. Republic treasure. Two of the shipwreck coins were originally graded MS66 by PCGS in 1999. The finer of these, which is cited above, is likely the single best 1865-S double eagle in existence. In more than two years, grade inflation has not change the population report with only two MS66 specimens.
Mr. Winter: As of the beginning of 2015, PCGS had graded a total of 467 in Uncirculated including 129 in MS64, 22 in MS65, and two in MS66. NGC had graded of 370 in Uncirculated including 82 in MS64, 58 in MS65, and eight in MS66. These figures are inflated by resubmissions. CAC has approved 50 Uncirculated examples: one in MS60, two in MS61, six in MS62, 14 in MS63, 25 in MS64, and two in MS65. Mr. Hansen had a couple MS64 PCGS specimens. They could be found in the Hansen #1 and #2 sets. Mr. Hansen original coin was a MS63, Cert ##38081755. The coin was replaced with MS64, CAC, Cert #81722155 with the purchase of the AWA Collection. This coin remained in the Hansen #1 collection until the recent GEM purchase. Mr. Hansen added a second MS64 Specimen late last year. The MS64 CAC, Cert # 05506165 was purchased in the Legend Auctions sale of The BigMo Civil War Collection Part II. The coin was an Ex S.S. Brother Jonathan, number 465. The BigMo coin was paced in the #2 set and never appeared as Hansen’s top 1865-S Liberty Double Eagle.
The new MS65 Hansen specimen was purchased in Stacks Bowers June 2021, U.S. Coins Part 2 sale. The coin is still in the original Brother Johnathan PCGS holder and described as: Beautiful Gem Mint State 1865-S Double Eagle. The coin is documented as appearing in auction one other time after the original 1999 sale. The coin appeared in the Heritage 10/2006 sale of The Hamburg-Sonoma Collection. The sale information given: In addition to the allure of the sunken-treasure pedigree, the coins recovered from the Brother Jonathan include many pieces in otherwise unattainable condition. To take this issue as just one example, PCGS has certified 20 pieces in 65, with 2 finer (8/06). Both of the finer pieces, which were both graded MS66, were offered in the May 1999 Bowers and Merena sale of coins from the shipwreck, as were 14 of the Gems. Even before the possibility of resubmission is raised, the rarity of Gem examples is clear. I cannot confirm the coin appeared as one of the PCGS certified 20 MS65 pieces in Oct 1999. The probability is good that it was one of them. Heritage described the coin as: The surfaces of this piece are mostly peach-gold with frosty luster. The center of the reverse takes on an orange hue with thin streaks of red that run to 3 o'clock. Some softness of strike is noted on the hair above the ear and on the right (facing) ribbon near the eagle, and solitary isolated abrasions are noted on Liberty's face and in the field to the left of the nose, but the surfaces are free of other significant defects. A magnificent and tangible piece of American history.
As previously stated, the coin was offered a few days ago in Stacks Bowers June 2021, U.S. Coins Part 2 sale. The recent provenance was not given. The coin was described as: A splendid example with blended rose-gold and deeper reddish-apricot patina blanketing both sides. The surfaces are as smooth as would be expected for the assigned grade and possess a softly ofrosted texture. A sharply executed strike adds to the appeal of this lovely and conditionally rare Gem. Fully Gem with strong visual appeal, the present example is among the finest certified available today. Mr. Hansen was able to obtain the coin with a $31,200 bid.
I will close by adding the Civil War connection. We have witness Mr. Hansen improving his 110-piece set significantly in the past year. There were only three coins outside the PCGS top ten on the population report. The Hansen 1865-S $20 MS64 specimen was the worst, POP 130/24. With this purchase the 1865-S $20 MS65 top coin is now POP 21/2. The other two prime candidates for upgrade, 1861-D $5 AU58, POP 5/13 and 1861 10C MS65, POP 28/11.
The 1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65: Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan makes a great addition to this amazing collection. As once describe by a poster: No doubt the most incredible set I've ever seen. Absolutely stunning! Thank you for letting me see it.
Provenance: S.S. Brother Jonathan Treasure Hoard (possible Bowers and Merena 5/1999); The Hamburg-Sonoma Collection / Dallas Signature Coin Auction (Heritage 10/2006), lot 3224, realized $14,950; U.S. Coins Part 2 Auction (Stacks Bowers 6/2021), lot 2574, realized $31,200, D.L. Hansen Collection.
1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65 POP 21/2 Certification #03449157, PCGS #8944 PCGS Price Guide: $35,000 / Realized $31,200 Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan
This is an update for a nice half eagle upgrade from the legendary Carson City Mint. The PCGS registry requires only 19 coins. PCGS described this little set as: The Carson City mint holds a special place in the hearts and minds of U.S. numismatists, conjuring up (largely accurate) images of a small "wild west" town where gold and silver were king. In operation from 1870 through 1893, mintages were generally quite modest with only the later (1890 and after) issues being struck in decent quantity. The opening year of 1870 is clearly the key to this fairly short set with fewer than 100 pieces extant, nearly all of which are well-circulated.
Tom Bender’s registry set ranks in the top position in the All-Time Finest catalog. The Bender set beats out the Harry W. Bass set by 2.5 points. The D.L. Hansen set rounds out the top three and is more that 4 point below the Bender set.
D.L. Hansen Top Ten
The above screenshot shows the top ten coins in the 19 piece Hansen set. As you can see, the set has three PCGS sole finest, POP 1/0 specimens. There are three others tied for PCGS finest and then three more that have only one coin certified finer. The new upgrade replaces an AU58 POP 8/4. The duplicate is a gorgeous 1874-CC, AU58 Cert #25631144, with current PCGS value of $40,000. Coins like this are forming an amazing duplicate set in the Collection.
Tom Bender Top Ten
In comparing the Bender and Hansen Sets, the top ten coins are very close. Actually, you will need to go down to the 10th coin to see a better Bender coin. The last nine coins are the cause of the separation. In addition, the Hansen 1870-CC places a real drag on the rating. The VF25 Cert #21625523 Specimen is a POP 9/47. Mr. Hansen can upgrade three coins and go from third to the all-time top. Could be a matter of time?
1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagle MS63
Expert Doug Winter wrote: In overall rarity, the 1874-CC is possibly the most common of the very rare Carson City Mint issues in the 1870-1878 period. (At least it had more auction appearances in my 337 catalogue survey and I have personally seen more of this date than of any of the others.) Most known specimens of the 1874-CC are well circulated and VF examples are typical. A few AU coins are known but only one 1874-CC catalogued as uncirculated has ever been offered at public auction. That coin was in the Robison Sale (Stack's 2/79) and it brought $19,000.
Coin Facts estimates 200 in all grades, with only three in mint condition, with none greater than Choice MS63+. PCGS has three certified as mint state: 1-MS62, 1-MS63, and 1-MS63+. NGC POP report has one minted graded, MS61. This combine POP report totals four with a possibility of one resubmittal. It appears Coin Facts estimates are pretty much in alignment with the POP reports. In reviewing auction history, this small grouping has appeared only five times since 1991. The Hansen specimen was not been offered in any of the previous actions, and with a hint provided by David Lawrence Rare Coins, there may be a good reason why. Of the four possible Mint State Specimens, I could positively account for just three. As a side note, the Harry Bass Specimen was an AU58.
The short roster of mint state 1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagles:
1. Polis / Vanderbilt Specimen, MS63+PCGS, George N. Polis, M.D. Collection (Bowers & Merena 6/1991) Lot 1512; A.J. Vanderbilt Collection (Stack's/Bowers 3/2018 as MS62 PCGS, Cert # 5195501 -OGH), Lot 10343, Realized $90,000 (Auction Record); note: coin upgraded to MS63+ PCGS with PCGS value of $165,000.
2. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, MS63 PCGS, Cert #40907608, Fresh from an European Bank; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 6/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. Bender Registry Set Specimen, MS62 PCGS Cert #24078981, Robison Collection (Stack's 2/1979), Lot 498; Reed Hawn Collection (Stack’s 10/1993) Lot 995; Dr. Larry Cutler Collection (Doug Winter and Lee Minshull, 11/1996); Nevada Collection; Battle Born Collection (Stack’s/Bowers 8/2012) Lot 11005, Realized $43,125; Tom Bender Registry Set.
4. NGC MS-61 Specimen,Listed on the NGC Census appears to be a relative (post-2003) newcomer to the Condition Census for this issue (Stacks Bowers 2018). Note: the coin has never appeared in auction.
The new Hansen coin was offered by David Lawrence Rare Coins. It was described as: Fresh from a European bank, this very scarce and popular CC mint issue. From an original mintage of just 21,198 coins struck, this is one of only a handful of uncirculated survivors. Only a single MS63+ example has been graded finer than this amazing specimen. A choice piece in all regards, satiny surfaces are devoid of any distracting contact marks and are warmly toned with pretty rose highlights on the obverse. A significant and thrilling opportunity for the advanced Liberty Head half eagle and Carson City Mint enthusiasts. With a MS62 example that is far inferior to this piece coming in at $90k in 2018, this coin is sure to find a new home!
The internet listing had an ask price of $181,130. DLRC gave the coin their Eye Appeal Rating of 5 stars. I would tend to agree, because the coin has a great look. This coin makes a great upgrade in the Hansen Carson City gold collection. Let’s watch and see if the three over the top coins are someday in the making.
Provenance: See #2 on the roster.
1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagle MS63 PCGS POP 1/1 Certification #40907608, PCGS #8334 PCGS Price Guide Value: $150,000 / Private Transaction Ex: European Bank Discovery
Comments
To some extent, this doesn't matter for the "legal tender" discussion because, as I mentioned, I think it's ultimately based on US law explicitly stating legal tender authorization.
The reason I used the private debt example for de facto currency use (like non-legal tender territorial coinage), is that the parties are envisioned to have an arm's length relationship and would presumably need to rely on the US government as a third-party to guarantee the payment.
In your hypothetical, the parties have a much closer, well-established relationship. Parties can decide on whatever payment instruments to use for their transaction without relying on an entity like the US government to guarantee value. It could simply be a barter transaction.
Justin just might get a kick out of this discussion! Imagine if Dell Loy became a customer?
Zoins- Would your position change if you knew that at the 1904 World’s Fair in St Louis, the ice cream vendors were accepting the Faran Zerbe 1904 USPI coins (being sold at the fair) as legal tender cash for their ice cream? 😉
Wondercoin
As I mentioned, this line of discussion is only for de facto commercial use, not legal tender status, but is interesting nonetheless.
If you are interested in discussing de facto commercial use, then yes, I am interested.
If you are interested in discussing legal tender status, I do not consider that to be legal tender.
For USPI coinage, I am not aware of either legal tender status or de facto commercial use in the United States, but I'd be happy to learn of it. Were the 1904 World's Fair vendors accepting USPI coinage?
The Peter Miller EAC Proofs, Part III
"These coins were once owned by such astute collectors as Eliasberg, Naftzger, Norweb, Pittman, Parmelee, Atwater, Garrett, Anderson-Dupont, Byron Reed and others." - BJ Searls, PCGS Set Registry Manager, 7/14/2010.
I really hope to see Mr. Hansen at some point in the future document his collection for provenance. I think it would add a lot of historic value. I confident all these famous pedigrees are found in the EAC Proofs that was purchased by D.L. Hansen from the Peter Miller EAC Proof Collection. As you saw in the previous update, he purchased eleven for upgrades to his existing coins. Today, you will see the ten coins purchased that he did not have, slot fillers. Of the 39 coins required in the Half Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1831-1857) Set, he purchased 21. According to my research and mathematical skills, the purchased resulted in adding 18 proof half cents to his duplicate collection. Mr. Hansen has not created a duplicate set, so we don’t know his second set completion percentage. We do know he has 18 of 39 required coins from the Peter Miller purchase. From what we know about previous updates in the past five years, I would not be hesitate to say his duplicate set is approx. 75% complete.
I indicated the ESM purchase added ten new coins. There were two sole finest PGGS POP 1/0 specimens, 1842 ORIGINAL, PR65RD and 1847 ORIGINAL, PR64RD. Also, two were tied for finest, 1849 LARGE DATE, PR64BN and 1855 PR65RD. All of the ten coins were PCGS Condition Census Top Five! The “worst” coin was the 1845 ORIGINAL, PR64RB with a PCGS POP of 4/3. This bottom of the lot coin is valued at $43,500. In the ten coins, two coins were not RB or RD designated: 1849 LARGE DATE, PR64BN, POP 2/0 and 1851 PR64BN, POP 1/1.
There are not that many current collectors that have registry sets for the 39 piece half cent major varieties proof set. Actually you can count all of them on two fingers. There were three before Peter Miller sold his set. Unfortunately, his set was not retired so it has been lost from the registry. The Miller ESM set was deleted on 3/24/2021. The other active collector is half cent specialist Jim McGuigan, as previously mention in a post that he is a PCGS Hall of Fame collector for early American half cents. The McGuigan set has a considerable higher weighted GPA than Hansen, so he should retain is top spot if he can find one of his missing coins before June 30th. The Hansen set is graded better than the famous Louis Eliasberg set, but the legendary HOF The Missouri Cabinet is still perched on top.
Today featured coin is the 1842 PR65RD Specimen that was listed as one of Miller's "top five" personal favorites. As stated, this is a coin that Mr. Hansen did not have in his collection. Let’s take a quick peek at this coin.
1842 Half Cent, Original, PR65RD
Information on the 1842 half cent is hard to come by. There’s no information in Coin Facts. In trying to find some tidbits to share, I came across one of my personal favorite writers from bygone years. About 25-30 years ago, I would often read articles that David Lange contributed to The Numismatics. The one I am about to share is not from The Numismatics, rather the NGC website. The article titled: The Coinage of 1842: Part One. In reference to the1842 Half Cent Proof, Mr. Lange wrote: There were no half cents made for circulation from 1836 through 1848, and those dated 1842 are all rare, proof-only strikings. Numismatists traditionally have divided these into "originals" and "restrikes," though no evidence exists to prove that any of these were coined during 1842. It's likely that the so-called originals were simply novodels, coins struck a few years later than the date they carry to fill gaps in the series. Those labeled as restrikes were simply later strikings of these novodels, made to supply the growing collector market of the 1850s. Whatever their true history, the half cents of 1842 are very rare and highly desired by series specialists.
There are a lot of comments made about the D.L. Hansen Collection. Some are good, and some are not so good. It appears our community is solidly on one side of the fence or the other. Mr. Lange said this coin is ”very rare and highly desired by series specialists.” I think what many people fail to realized, the work that Mr. Hansen is doing is at the level of an array of series specialists. There are several things that make Mr. Hansen unique, and we have discussed many of them over the past few years. The quality of this set is one that you would expect to be assembled by an EAC specialist and not particularly a 15,000 coin collector.
With a mintage of 15, Coin Facts survival estimates 11 specimens, with 3 GEM 65 or Better. I think the actual count could be a coin or two more, since I have confirmed four distinct specimens. In GEM Proof state, there are two coins certified by NGC, PR65BN and PR66RD. There are four PCGS certified, with three designated as Brown, PR65BN, PR65+BN, and PR66BN. The final and sixth entry in the POP charts is the Hansen/ESM PR65RD PCGS specimen. Amazingly, if there are truly six GEMs, only two have appeared in auction in modern era. This is my roster of six certified GEM coins.
1. Norweb/Partrick Specimen: PR66★ Red NGC, Ex: Richard B. Winsor (S.H. & H. Chapman, 12/1895), lot 1049; George H. Earle (Henry Chapman, 6/1912), lot 3668; Thomas L. Elder; (possibly) George H. Hall Collection (Stack's, 5/1945), lot 144 as "Brilliant red;" Dr. Charles A. Cass (Empire Collection, Stack's, 11/1957), lot 107; Norweb Family Collection (Bowers and Merena, 11/1987), lot 100; Jon Hanson; Donald G. Partrick (heritage 4/2021), Lot 3739, released $72,000 (Auction Record)
2. Hansen/ESM Specimen PR65RD PCGS, Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. McGuigan Specimen PR66BN PCGS, Ex JA/Stack; Jim McGuigan PCGS Hall of Fame Registry Set.
4. Missouri Cabinet Specimen: PR65+BN PCGS, Joseph Brobston Collection - Stack's FPL #69 1/1963, listed for $700 - Philip M. Showers Collection - Stack's, sold privately in 1969 - Willis Harrington duPont Collection - Fred S. "Freddy" Werner, sold privately in 2/1976 - Superior, sold privately in 2/1976 - Joe Flynn & Son Rare Coins, Inc. (Joseph S. Flynn, Jr.), sold privately on 4/20/1976 - R. Tettenhorst Collection - Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society - Missouri Cabinet (Hall of Fame Registry Set) - Goldbergs 1/2014:157, realized $29,900
5. PR65BN PCGS Specimen, Possible duplicate (unconfirmed).
6. PR65BN NGC Specimen, Possible duplicate(unconfirmed).
I will be discussing the Dell Loy Hansen purchase of The Peter Miller EAC Large Cent Proofs over the next few postings. This should be fun to watch.
Provenance: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (Harlan J. Berk, Ltd / David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1842 1/2C ORIGINAL, PR65RD
PCGS POP 1/0, (PR66RD NGC finest certified)
Certification #09811287, PCGS #1262
PCGS Price Guide $47,500 / Unknown, purchased as set
Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set)
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
The Peter Miller EAC Proofs, Part IV
“The ESM Collector worked for many years to put together his amazing set of copper coinage. And when the opportunity came to keep the final 2 sets together and in private hands, it simply made sense to work with John Brush and D.L. Hansen. In less than a week we were able to put together the sale and it made for a perfect marriage of a collection and a collector.” - Mike Printz, HJBLTD 5/17/2021.
David Lawrence Rare Coins released a press statement this week: DLRC Acquires ESM Proof Half and Large Cent Collections from Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. I first saw the release in Monthly Greysheet online. The announcement also appeared on our host website. For more details, click this link.
https://www.pcgs.com/news/dlrc-acquires-esm-proof-half-and-large-cent-collections
The article did not give number of coins purchased rather stated, nearly complete set of Proof Half and Large Cents from the collector of the ESM Collection. I believe the purchased included all half and large cent proofs, with major varieties with the exception of the 1852 Original, Large Berries Half Cent. According to registry count, the total would be about 74 coins. The price of the transaction was not given. According to PCGS Price Guide, I would say the deal would be somewhere in the ballpark of $2,000,000. These coins are very rare and difficult to find in any condition, but the coins in the transaction are some of the finest known.
It was stated: One of the most impressive sets of Proof Half Cents and Large Cents ever put together. In a private transaction, Mike Printz of Harlan J. Berk, Ltd (HJBLTD) and John Brush of DLRC pieced together the transfer of the nearly complete set of Proof Half and Large Cents from the collector of the ESM Collection to the D.L. Hansen Collection. The collection, put together over many years, was the last piece of the ESM Collection that was to enter the marketplace. However, the private transaction put together by Brush and Printz allows the set to remain intact and to remain in the hands of a collector, DLRC’s partner, Dell Loy Hansen.
The Large Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1817-1857) set requires 36 coins. Prior to the acquisition, the Hansen set was 50% complete (18 of 36). Of the existing 18 pervious Hansen coins, he replaced six with the ESM purchase.
As you can see, all six coins are PCGS POP Top Five, with one specimen, 1842 PR65RD as sole finest red designated specimen known which results in a POP 1/0 classified coin. Two other coins are tied PCGS finest. The dog of the six is an amazing 1844 PR65RB with a PCGS POP of 2/2. The coin is TOP POP for RB, but two other coins are graded better. Today, let’s feature the 1842 PR65RD which replaces 1842PR64BN Certification #10792011. The existing coin is a POP 4/2 from the Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection. The coin is a N-1 Variety same as Hansen’s new ESM coin. The 1842 N-1 and N-2 cents are the only Small Date varieties, and proofs are known only of N-1. The die lumps below the 1 and 4 in the date are clearly visible on this early die state cent. (Heritage 5/2015)
1842 Braided Hair Cent, PR65RD, ex: Parmelee / Peter Miller
With a mintage of 15, Coin Facts survival estimates 11 specimens, with two GEM 65 or Better. Again, I believe we see Coin Facts as incorrect with the GEM survival. I place the survival at three probably four. PCGS list four GEM examples in its POP Report with NGC showing two. I know for certain one of the NGC listed has been crossed and has not been deleted from the active database. The Hansen PR65RD PCGS specimen has an active NGC number: Cert #242696-013. The NGC “Verify NGC Certification” lists the coin as NGC Grade, PF 65 RD, pedigreed to the Parmelee Collection. The NGC Price Guide Value is $96,000. So there is no doubt that NGC database has at least one duplicate. The other NGC graded GEM is a PR65BN. I cannot verify this coin, so it is possible both NGC GEMs are invalid listing.
As for the four PCGS GEMs, three, I can verify for certain. There is a PR66RB which has no information nor can I find an image. This would be a great coin to find some additional information. Amazingly, an 1842 Proof GEM has appeared in auction only three times in modern era. This is the list of GEM 1842 Braided Hair Cent that I put together.
1. Hansen / ESM / Parmelee Specimen, PR65RD PCGS (formally PR65 Red NGC), Lorin G. Parmelee (New York Coin & Stamp Co., 6/1890), lot 1137; Peter Mougey (Thomas L. Elder, 9/1910), lot 225; Dr. Henry W. Beckwith (S.H. Chapman, 4/1923), lot 98; William Festus Morgan (J.C. Morgenthau, 6/1932), lot 328; B. Max Mehl; T. James Clarke; later, Bowers and Merena (8/1999), lot 32; The Eugene H. Gardner Collection III / US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 5/2015 as PR65 Red NGC ), lot 98046, realized $73,437.50 (Auction Record); Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
2. Twin Leaf Specimen, PR66BN PCGS, Martin Haber; R. Tettenhorst, to the present collection, November 1994; Twin Leaf Collection of United States Large Cents, Part I (Stacks Bowers 7/2015) lot 2349, realized $25,850; Currently in a user's private PCGS Set Registry Inventory.
3. Dan Holmes Specimen, PR65BN PCGS, Superior 10/7/90:3390-Denis Loring-R. S. Brown, Jr. 4/17/99; Dan Holmes; Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldberg 2/2011), lot 32, realized $20,700.
4. PR66RB PCGS Specimen, Unknown
5. PR65BN NGC Specimen, Unknown, possible duplicate
In the 2015 Heritage Auction for the Eugene H. Gardner sale, the coin was graded PR65 RED by NGC and realized an auction record of $73,437.50. The record still stands today. The coin was headlined as: The Finest Known 1842 Proof, From the Parmelee and Mougey Collections. The Heritage Auctioneer described the coin as: This amazing Gem Red proof offers brilliant orange mint color on both sides, nearly as bright as the day it was made with only slight mellowing on each side. A hint of pale blue appears at the upper obverse and delicate light bluish-brown on the reverse. A few trivial toning spots will aid in future identification of this piece.
Provenance: See #1 in roster.
1842 Braided Hair Cent, PR65RD
PCGS POP 1/0, Sole Finest
Certification #25686183, PCGS #1957
PCGS Price Guide $95,000 / Unknown, purchased as set
Ex: Parmelee / Gardner /Peter Miller
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Hansen - AWA New Orleans $20 Liberty
I have been working on my own $20 Liberty O's so I decided to check out the Hansen set. I am not sure if this set has been discussed on this thread but it is awesome. It has almost every top O available. You should check it out.
The Peter Miller EAC Proofs, Part V
"This opportunity was another amazing opportunity that allowed us to grow what is already the greatest collection of US Coins put together by a private individual, and to not only improve several pieces already in the collection, but to fill some rather large holes. Having known Mike for many years and having worked with the ESM Collector before, we knew that the quality would be exquisite, and Mike made the transaction an easy one for us to put together." - John Brush 7/14/2010.
John Brush is quoted as saying “fill some rather large holes.” We will look that how significant the purchase was to filling hole in Large Cent portion of the Hansen Great Collection. If you recall, we saw the Miller purchase fill ten holes in the half cent collection. For large cents, the impact was much greater. The Hansen Large Cent Proof Collection had 18 holes to fill, and the purchase accomplished the task with ease. As you can see, the coins were not just any hole fillers, rather the a group of the finest certified by PCGS.
Most of these coins will never be replaced. Why?, because there are no coins better. Of the 18 coins that filled holes, sixteen are the finest known! There is one coin tied with one other coin as finest by PCGS, 1829 PR64RB, POP 2/0. The runt of the litter is the 1852, PR65RB, POP 1/1. The only PCGS coin that could improve this 18 piece group is the Magnificent Red Gem Proof 1852 from Twin Leaf Collection. The ex: Boyd – Naftzger – Tettenhorst specimen was sold in Stacks ‘s July 2015 Baltimore Auction for $105,750. The PCGS POP 1/0 specimens in the grouping just keep on going. How do you choose just one to feature? If you recall, Miller's "top five" personal favorites was published in 2010 and I included a listing of the coins in my opening posting a few days ago. Not all of his top 5 were GEMs. For that matter, only two of his top five were GEMS. I will feature one of them that was not a GEM, the 1832 Braided Hair Cent.
1832 Braided Hair Cent PR64RD, Ex: Peter Miller (ESM Registry Set)
With a mintage of 5, this coin is a rarity from day one. Expert Ron Guth wrote: Proof 1832 Large Cents are exceedingly rare. Perhaps as many as five different examples are known, one of which is in the Smithsonian and the other is from an old sale in the early part of the twentieth century and which has not been seen for over one hundred years). Thus, there are only three collectible examples at present (2015). The finest Proof 1832 Large Cent is the PCGS PR64RD example that is currently part of the ESM Collection (one of the finest collections of U.S. coins ever assembled).
In a Stack’s 2015 sale, the auctioneer offered this roster of specimens. When Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of United States and Colonial Proof Coins was published; he listed just two known Proof 1832 cents, including this one, though his provenance strings were not correct. More recently, there were three confirmed, including one in the Smithsonian Collection. However, it seems that the number is now five. There has been a great deal of confusion over these specimens and crossing of wires amongst the provenance lines seems to have be-come almost tradition. The five different specimens we are aware of include:
1. Hansen / ESM Specimen; 1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64RD PCGS Public Auction of U.S. Gold, Silver & Copper Coins / possibly Northern Bay Collection (Stack's 3/2006 as uncertified PR64, Proof Red), lot 3584, $83,375 (Auction Record); Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set), Private Purchase of Peter Miller EAC Half and Large Cent Proofs (David Lawrence Rare Coins 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection
2. Coinbert Specimen, 1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64BN PCGS, Charles J. Dupont, Stack’s, September 1954:707; Dorothy Nelson, Stack’s, February 1976:109; Jerry Bobbe; Roy E. Naftzger, Jr.; 1989 EAC sale, April 1989:336; Denis Loring; R. Tettenhorst; Jay Parrino, to the present collection, November 1995; Twin Leaf Collection of United States Large Cents, Part I (Stacks Bowers 7/2015), lot 2223, realized $35,250, Coinbert Collection (1832 4-piece PCGS Registry Set)
3. Mervis Specimen,1832 Braided Hair Cent, PR64 Brown NGC Thomas Cleneay (Chapman Brothers, 12/1890), lot 1879; Anderson Dupont Sale (Stack's, 9/1954), lot 707; TAD Sale (Stack's, 2/1976), lot 109; EAC Sale (4/1989), lot 336; Denis Loring; R. Tettenhorst; W.M. Wadlington (via Bob Grellman and Chris Victor-McCawley); FUN Signature Auction / Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection (Heritage 1/2014), lot 2162, realized $38,187.50.
4. James B. Wilson Specimen, Proof, James Wilson (Thomas L. Elder, 10/1908), lot 1073. Note from Stacks sale: The Breen plate coin supposedly also included James B. Wilson (lot 1073) as a past owner, but it does not seem to match the Wilson plate, which should show the same spot that we know was already present at the time. In fact, the Wilson plate coin does not seem to match any other coins we have seen images of, so it could be a fifth specimen, but that plate is very old and the coin could have changed considerably since Wilson. Note: This specimen is sometimes shown in #3 provenance.
5. National Numismatics Collection Specimen, Proof, Smithsonian Institution
Stack’s writes: Whatever the case, with only four or five known coins, this Proof 1832 cent is a prize for the finest of collections. The magnificent cabinets of Norweb, Eliasberg and Pittman, all known for great early Proof coins, were missing this issue.
The Hansen-ESM specimen has only one auction appearance that I can find. The sale was hosted by Stack’s and was labeled: Public Auction of U.S. Gold, Silver & Copper Coins, U.S. Paper Currency and World Gold & Silver Coins. In PCGS Auction Prices information on the website, the coin appears to be from a collection named, Northern Bay Collection. I have not been able to confirm that by a second source. If the plates have been matched to any earlier sales, I have not been able to confirm. Stack’s offered this information in the 2006 sale: The reverse die shows a crack extending from the final 'A' of AMERICA through much of UNITED; a feature seldom seen on Proof coins, although the Philadelphia Mint was not terribly careful with regard to the die states used to strike Proofs during this period. Close examination yields no troubling specks or spots to disturb the splendid surfaces of this jewel. It should be noted, furthermore, that no Proof examples of this date have been graded by either NGC or PCGS. For the specialist, this may be the only opportunity to purchase a Proof of this date for many decades to come. Breen notes that just 3 are known in his 1988 Encyclopedia, up from 2 listed in his 1977 Proof Encyclopedia. Without question, one of the highlights of the present extensive offering and a coin worthy of the finest collection.
The coin was described as: An extraordinary coin that retains magnificent red color with virtually no fading. The strike is a match to the Anderson DuPont coin that we sold in 1954, with the final star sharp, and the others slightly soft at their centers. This does not appear to be the Anderson DuPont coin, however, as it was noted to be an ''olive and steel blue Proof.'' If photographic plates are available, perhaps an examination of the plates could verify the matter one way or the other. There is evidence of double striking on the date. The fields, furthermore, offer an exceptionally reflective, watery appearance.
It is a shame that every POP 1/0 Specimen from the Peter Miller Collection cannot have its own feature. The fact is, it is just too many, although I would bet each would have a story to tell. I will complete the Peter Miller updates with just one more posting. Can it get better? Maybe not, but the last coin will be a dynamite coin! I promise.
Provenance: See #1 above
1832 Braided Hair Cent PR64RD
PCGS POP 1/0, only known RB/RD Specimen
Certification #06509037, PCGS #51798
PCGS Price Guide $80,000 / Unknown, purchased as set
Ex: Peter Miller (ESM Registry Set)
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Great looking coin. Proof? Shrug
Acquiring the Peter Miller ESM set intact is a great accomplishment! What wonderful coins!
Others have acquired other top collections, but no one is doing it at the scale of Hansen.
Are you thinking it's a misattributed business strike?
It's hard to tell from the photos.
Proof according to Ron Guth, Peter Miller, Stacks 2006 sale, and most importantly, PCGS. I guess being Hansen and Brush purchase them, there going to someone to say they are all business strikes.
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
A lot of the rarities we've been seeing Hansen buy show up less frequently than the iconic rarities he's passing on. IMHO, from the comfort of my recliner, without any skin in the game, and an outsider's perspective, it's smart buying because it takes advantage of all the relatively new info we have about rarity and frequency of appearance in the market. It's a modern collecting ethic. He's one of us.
There’s plenty of ‘proofs’ in tpg holders that aren’t really - has nothing to do with Hansen. The Mint knew how to make no brainer proofs at that time - a real proof should look the look and walk the walk.
It would be a lot harder to reassemble sets of this caliber after they have been sold piecemeal while the icon coins are easier to get when the opportunity arises.
Given that the ESM set is owned by Peter Miller, what does ESM mean?
That coin is totally all-time OMFUG.
remainder deleted as OT
Well it does have something to do with Hansen since your comment was directed at his purchase of his 1832 braided cent.
No, my comment was directed at the cent...
Thus my comment “great looking coin”
And just because they didn’t always doesn’t mean they didn’t know how...
deleted as OT
That 1842 half cent is SEXY! Such a rich patina.
The shrug, to me, indicated ignorance and an unwillingness to admit it. Or, at the very least, a saddening lack of curiosity. It's nowhere near the first time it's happened.
The shrug was acknowledging there’s no way to know from that image of that coin - it looks unc but there are many attributes such as hidden hard mirrors only apparent at an angle that would totally be possible. Nothing more, nothing less. And you are treading rather heavily don’t you think - especially since not even your exalted self could pronounce that coin a proof from that image.
I guess these were done in England and shipped back Stateside
deleted as OT
The Mint did NOT know how to make no-brainer proofs at that time
So can we agree that they did?
@tradedollarnut is righter than I am. Apologies. This is @Currin's thread, and loads of others have a share in it.
The Peter Miller EAC Proofs, Part VI
Most survivors have toned down to a brown color, with varying traces of original mint red. Technical quality ranges from PR60 to PR66, with most falling between those grades. One of the more exciting examples is the nearly full Red PCGS PR65CAM (now in the ESM Collection). - Ron Guth
All good things come to an end. I have certainly enjoyed studying a little about Pete Miller’s EAC Proofs. The set of coins are amazing. Mr. Miller started assembling the set in 2003, with a couple purchases. I will close his tribute with a few words spoken by Mr. Miller and Don Willis in a discussion of the ESM Copper Collection, when on display at Long Beach Expo. The interview took place August 13, 2010. The interview is seven minutes and thirty-seven seconds long. It is well worth the time to watch.
The Large Cents with Major Varieties, Proof (1817-1857) set is a highlight, from the 1817 PR62BN POP 2/0 to the 1857 PR65RD Pop 2/0. The 36 piece set is described as: This set is overflowing with rarities, yet the coins are relatively affordable (all things considered) because so few collectors even attempt to put it together. After all, the mintages on several of the issues are less than ten pieces! This set comprises both the Coronet Head cents (1817-38) and the Braided Hair cents (1840-57). If you insist on PR65RD (or better) coins then you won’t go far with this set, but if you want one of the great challenges in any acceptable grade then this might be exactly what you're looking for!
The Hansen / Miller set is not only overflowing with rarities, it has many of the finest masterpieces known. You have seen in the past couple postings just a few of them. The set has 20 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (55%). Another seven is tied for finest, which result in 75% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another three have two. The lowest POP coin is the 1849 PR65RB with POP 4/3. Is it possible for anyone to assembly a better set? I don’t think so.
There are so many coins from this collection that I could highlight. The one I choose for today is the 1848 PR65CAM. It is not Hansen’s finest graded 1848. The coin is special because it is the only PCGS PRCAM proof in Large Cent. Just to be clear, from 1817-1857, this coin is the only PCGS PRCAM proof. There is one NGC proof CAM, but no more. This was a special coin and one of Mr. Miller’s personal favorites. I can certainly see why.
1848 Braided Hair Cent, PR65CAM
Expect Ron Guth: In 1848, Mint employees used a single pair of dies to strike a small amount of Proof Large Cents. Those dies were reserved solely for Proofs, and no business strikes followed. Thus, if an 1848 Large Cent can be attributed as a Newcomb 19, it is most definitely a Proof, even if it spent time in circulation. In 1977, Walter Breen enumerated twelve different examples; today, we know of at least the same number of demonstrably different ones, plus a few more. Thus, the number of survivors falls somewhere between a dozen and twenty examples. Most survivors have toned down to a brown color, with varying traces of original mint red. Technical quality ranges from PR60 to PR66, with most falling between those grades. One of the more exciting examples is the nearly full Red PCGS PR65CAM (now in the ESM Collection).
Mr. Guth gives survival between a dozen and twenty examples. Coin Facts estimates 26 in all grades. PCGS has certified 18 total. For this exercise, PCGS has certified six GEM Proofs, 3-PR65BN, 1-PR66BN, and 1- PR65CAM. (Note: Mr. Hansen now has the latter two). As for NGC, they have certified five GEM Proofs, 1-PR65RB, 1- PR65RD, 1-PR66BN, 2-PR66RB. It appears eleven certified GEM Proofs may not be that far off. In my reach, a GEM 1848 Proof has appeared in auction 13 times since the Garrett sale in 1979. It appears to me, there may be as many as nine discrete GEM Proof specimens. The following is a partial roster of the top condition census coins. Surprising (or maybe not) only two of NGC GEM proofs have appeared in auction, the Kaufman Specimen and a specimen sold by Kagin’s in 2020.
1. Hansen / Starr Specimen, PR66BN PCGS, CAC, Howard R. Newcomb; J. C. Morganthau and Co., May 1945, lot 745; Floyd T. Starr, Abe Kosoff, 1949 ANA, lot 1843, Willard C. Blaisdell; Roy E. Naftzger,Jr., Paramount, Auction ‘86, lot 1536; R. Tettenhorst, the Twin Leaf Collection, Stack’s-Bowers, July 16, 2015, lot 2478, The Regency Auction XXIII (Legend 10/2017), lot 67, realized $32,900, D.L Hansen Collection.
2. Kaufman Specimen, PR66RB NGC, Denver Platinum Night (Heritage 8/2006), lot 5047, realized $27,600; Signature US Coin Auction (Heritage 5/2009), lot 92, realized $21,850.
3. Hansen / Miller Specimen, PR65CAM, New Netherlands, 6/58, lot 1262; Northern Bay Collection Part 2 (Stacks’ 5/2006), lot 3600, realized $34,500.
4. Kagin’s Specimen, PR65RB NGC, ANA National Money Show Auction (Kagin’s 2/2020), Lot 1034, realized $15,000.
5. Naftzger Specimen, PR65 Graves (Stack’s 4/54) lot 1761; Starr, lot 575; Ted Naftzger Collection Part III / Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldberg 9/2009), lot 863, realized $42,550 (Auction Record)
As you can see, The D.L. Hansen Collection has two top coins. The first coin is the sole finest Brown specimen, PR66BN PCGS, CAC Approved. Mr. Hansen purchased the coin in a 2017 Legend Auction. I am not sure why the coin is not a RB, it has the look. The Hansen / Miller coin is a great addition to this great collection. It will to be nice to see if Mr. Hansen decides to keep both coins. I hope you have enjoyed following the updates on the Pete Miller purchase. You may or may not be surprised with the next update. Just plan to watch and see.
Provenance: See 3 above
1848 Braided Hair Cent, PR65CAM
PCGS POP 1/0 PCGS, Only CAM PCGS Certified Large Cent
Certification #09634147, PCGS #81975
PCGS Price Guide $60,500 / Unknown, purchased as set
Ex: Peter Miller (ESM HOF Registry Set)
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
1856 Half Cent PR66RB Upgrade
PQ Coins Still Available in a Time of Show Shutdowns – Paradime Coins (CoinWeek -January 6, 2021)
There are two points that can be made with this upgrade. First point, after purchasing one of the greatest collections of EAC proofs, what would you expect next from the collector. If the collector is Dell Loy Hansen, do not be surprised to see a new upgrade. The second point, we have seen a few dealers complaining they cannot acquire any good coins for inventory. It is nice to see a small coin company, i.e., Paradime Coins that can acquire nice coins. When you can offer a coin to improve the Hansen Collection just after purchasing one of the greatest collections assembled for an early proof series, you are doing something right.
Coin Auction Highlights by Paradime Coins …… 2020 was a turbulent time for many. The numismatic market, however, in our opinion was stronger than ever for most series. Whether dealing in modern coinage, bullion, or collectible U.S coins, there was a surge in demand coupled with increased time being spent online perusing and searching for rarities that resulted in extremely strong online sales and online auction results. At ParadimeCoins, we are fortunate to have been set up as an online e-commerce site even before COVID. As such, our supply chain of acquiring PQ coins and selling our inventory to clients was stable and unaffected. Though we miss major shows deeply, we are optimistic that changes in our industry will not only bring a new breed of collectors and investors to the market as we have already started seeing, in fact roughly 80% of our sales in 2020 were to new clients who are building great sets but that prices for eye-appealing CAC coins will surge even higher. Congratulations Paradime Coins.
There is a difference in quality between the Hansen EAC half cent proof set and the large cent set. The large cent is without question, one of, or the greatest EAC Large Cent Proof set ever assembled. I gave the numbers a couple days ago. It has many of the finest masterpieces known. The set has 20 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (55%). Another seven is tied for finest, which result in 75% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another three have two. The half cent is not quite this good.
There is a key reason why Pete Miller could not build a half cent set comparable to his large cent set. Dell Loy Hansen will be facing the same challenge. That challenge goes by the name of Jim McGuigan. Mr. McGuigan is not a new kid in the block. He goes back to the time that Mr. Miller started his collection in 2003 or maybe before. The success that Mr. Miller accomplished in Large Cents, Mr. McGuigan accomplished in Half Cents. As a Hall of Famer, he is described by PCGS as: The Jim McGuigan set of half cents is one of the great specialized collections of all-time. The circulation strikes are extraordinary quality and very complete, both the basic and with varieties sets. The proofs are off-the-chart in terms of quality. Spend some time looking at this great collection. This is how it's supposed to be done. The McGuigan proof set is described as “off-the-chart in terms of quality”.
Let’s get a better handle on what “off-the-chart in terms of quality” means. The 39-piece set has 10 PCGS Pop 1/0 specimens (26%). Another four is tied for finest, which result in 36% of the set is PCGS Top Pop. Another five have only one PCGS certified coin better, and another eight have two. There are six coins outside the PCGS Condition Census Top Five. This is a great set, but there are a few opportunities for better coins. This is the look at the PCGS All-Times Finest sets.
As can be seen, the McGuigan set and The Missouri Cabinet set are very close in GPA weighted, 65.96 vs 65.97. The major difference in the two Hall of Fame sets, The Missouri Cabinet set was completed, and the McGuigan set is missing two coins. The Hansen set is in the mix, but the GPA weighted is downed by 0.35 point and missing the very challenging 1852 Lg Berries specimen. It will be interesting to watch Hansen set in future and whether it will make a challenge for the top spot.
1856 Braided Hair Half Cent, B-1, PR66RB
Coin Factors does not make it exactly clear the two major varieties for the 1856 Braided Hair Half Cent. PCGS #35423, #34424, #35425 are defined as 1856 1/2C, (Proof), with no distinction of variety. The mintage given in all grades and varieties is typically 225. The survival estimate is about 50 for BN, 15 for RB, and three for RD. There has not been a PCGS certified GEM in RD.
PCGS #1329, #1330, #1331 are defined as 1856 1/2C Restrike, (Proof). The mintage and survival estimates are not given. Only two have been certified by PCGS at this time. They are both brown, PR64BN and PR65BN. Mr. Hansen has one of these, the PR65BN from the Missouri Cabinet. The new coin (PR66RB) replaces this coin. This purchase allows both major varieties in the D.L. Hansen Collection.
At the current time, PCGS only requires one specimen in the major varieties set. It will be interesting to see if this change in the future. In case it does, Mr. Hansen have two great specimens. The new PR66RB specimen was purchased from Paradime Coins. The coin was described as: From a minuscule mintage of 225 of which a generous 50 are estimated in all grades and condition believed to exist today, this ex American Numismatic Rarities "Classics Sale" 7/2003:103 is simply put the finest of this date in all designations. A pop 1/0 in RB, there is no other 66 in either brown or red. This delicately toned draped bust half cent with broad edges stands out superbly. With a price guide of $26,000 and no comp it is not difficult to appreciate the deep cobalt blue/green hues as it transition to bright neon red. Any copper proof is a prized collection, but obtaining a pop 1 single finest copper proof with a bonus cac approval and from the 1850's is a true accomplishment.
By all indications, this coin is exactly as described by Paradime Coins: A pop 1/0 in RB, there is no other 66 in either brown or red. Oddly, the PCGS registry does not recognize the coin as PCGS POP 1/0. This is as the coin appear in the set.
I cannot explain this conflict, except the coin appears to be a true POP 1/0. It appeared in a Great Collection Auction on 12/13/2020. The coin realized $15,187.50 with buyer’s fees. The auctioneer listed the coin as: Single finest with CAC approval. This may be how Paradime Coins obtained the coin. In an eBay listing, Paradime asked price was $23,000. The coin appeared to have been purchased in a private transaction, so the sale price in not known. In the Coin Facts Pedigree, the coin was listed as appearing in American Numismatic Rarities "Classics Sale" 7/2003:103. This information does not appear correct in my ANR catalog. More research is needed. This coin resulted in a nice upgrade to this great collection of Early American Copper Half Cents Proofs.
Provenance: Simpson Collection; Legend; Morphy (5/2014), lot 173 as part of a complete 1856 Proof Set; Internet Auction (12/2020), ID #899058, realized $15,187.50; Purchased in Private Transaction (Paradime Coins), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1856 Braided Hair Half Cent, B-1, PR66RB
PCGS POP 1/0 PCGS, CAC Approved
Certification #30773131, PCGS #1330
PCGS Price Guide $26,000 / Unknown private purchased
Ex: Simpson / Morphy
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Jim McGuigan has been around as a dealer since 1980 (or earlier) and collected before that. He could care less about registry points.
If true, why has he posted his set in the registry?
Great write up @Currin Just to add regarding the Dec 2020 1856 1/2C PR66RB PCGS CAC this was not an auction sale on GreatCollections per se, but was a brokered deal by GreatCollections with the owner of the coin and ParadimeCoins.
www.paradimecoins.com - Specializing in Top Pop Type PCGS CAC coins. Subscribe To Our NEWPs Mailing List
To share the fruits of his life-long passion? That's what they are. If no pictures are posted I'll take it all back. @Currin can compare the "sets", Jimmy could care less about what anyone else outside of classicists might think. I doubt if he thinks of what he owns as completable "sets", rather as a collection.
Charlotte Mint Upgrade
"The finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date." - According to Doug Winter (HA 2/1999)
It has been a year since the last Charlotte update. This in one of the interesting facets when tracking the growth of this collection. You never know what will come next. We spent a couple weeks looking at some amazing EAC coins assembled over two decades by Pete Miller. Today we are switching to gold. First a little quick recap of the Hansen Charlotte Mint Gold Collection.
The completed basic set for this mint contains 50 items, and there are four additional items for the major varieties set. Even with this somewhat low count, only six registry collections have met the challenge for completion (Bass, Smithsonian, Eliasberg, Southern Collection, NC Collection and JJ Pitman). We know there are others as we will learn more about the Stanley Elrod Collection later in this posting. Hansen has ascended to the top of the registry for the basic 50-coin set. The collection achieved all-time finest for the first time in November 2018. Harry W. Bass was previously honored with assembling compete set of the highest quality gold coin collection minted at the Charlotte mint.
Presently, Hansen’s basic set has improved to GPA rating of 60.64 and the Bass set is 59.66. In the past 12 months, the Hansen team has replaced eight coins and improve the GPA by about 0.35 point. I have often said that I cannot make a claim that the Hansen is better than the Bass set, because we know comparing coins from different eras can be difficult and highly debatable. Also, it certainly would be interesting to see how the Hansen and Elrod sets compared. The only fact that can be concluded is that D. L. Hansen Collection of Charlotte Gold is the #1 register set of all-times and improving its GPA at a rate of a coin every couple months.
For the major varieties set, Hansen still needs two varieties (1849-C Open Wreath $1 and 1839/8 $2.5). Bass did not owned neither the 1949-C Open Wreath $1 or 1839/8 $2.5. If Hansen can complete the set with last two items, he will accomplish a goal that no has ever been able to achieve (Note: According to PCGS registry). Locating and purchasing the last two coins does not appear to be a focus for the Hansen Collection. It will be interesting to watch to see if the last two coins are obtainable at some point.
1842-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle MS65, CAC Approved, POP 1/0, Ex: Elrod
This coin is not only a PCGS TOP POP 1/0 specimen but may be the “finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.” According to Expert David Akers: Always very weakly struck and, like the 1841-C, often seen with a broad border and wire rim. Very rare in all grades. Stanley Kesselman says he handled a choice Unc. a few years ago, but I have never seen a strictly uncirculated 1842-C quarter eagle, and no more than a few that even graded a full EF. Like every quarter eagle from 1840 to 1842 (except 1841), the 1842-C is largely unappreciated as a rarity, and therefore, substantially undervalued. Doug Winter added by saying: 1842-C is one of the rarest quarter eagles from this mint. It is also one of the rarest coins of any denomination produced in Charlotte. It still remains relatively undervalued and under publicized in spite of its rarity. The 1842-C quarter eagle is a rare coin in any grade. It is nearly always seen in heavily worn conditions and is rare even properly graded EF40. This is the rarest Charlotte quarter eagle in high grades and properly graded AU examples are seldom offered for sale. In Mint state there are no more than three or four known, including one Gem, which is probably the single finest Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.
Coin Facts estimates 116 in all grades, with only four in mint condition, with one of the four a GEM. That sole finest GEM is now in the D.L. Hansen Collection and is featured here. PCGS has certified 91 specimens with probable resubmittals. The PCGS certified mint state can be boiled down to three: 2- MS62 and the sole Hansen MS65 GEM. As for NGC, they have four listed in the POP report, 2-MS61, 1-MS62 and a MS65 which is certainly the Ex: Elrod coin that appeared in a Heritage 1999 auction as MS 65 NGC. It appears there could be five TPG coins graded between MS61 and MS62. Most publications report only three which would lead to believe a couple in the POP reports are duplicates. The other two confirmed mint state specimens are the MS62 PCGS grade from the Soluna Collection and the MS61 PCGS grade from the Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection. The third may be a MS63 uncertified specimen that appeared in a R.M. Smythe Auction in 2003.
The early history of the Hansen GEM can be traced to the great Elrod Collection. Doug Winter wrote in an August 20, 2018, Coin Week article titled “Eight Great U.S. Coin Collections.” The Elrod Collection ranked #5 after the #1- The Ed Milas Collection of No Motto Half Eagles, #2 - The ELIASBERG Collection, #3 The NORWEB Collection, and #4 The GARRETT Collection. The Bass Collection was #8, humm..
Anyway, Mr. Winter described the Elrod Collection as: For most of the first part of the 20th century, branch mint coins were overlooked by all but a small number of collectors. Assembling specialized sets of coins from Charlotte and the other branch mints really did not begin in earnest until the late 1950s/early ’60s. One of the first collectors to specialize in high-grade examples of Charlotte coins was Stanley Elrod from Matthews, North Carolina. Elrod began collecting coins from his “local mint” in the 1960s and would go on to assemble at least three complete sets. The last of these was clearly the finest set of Charlotte coins ever assembled. It included a number of finest known and Condition Census pieces. It was first offered for sale as a complete set in the mid-1980s but serious negotiations regarding its sale did not begin until the end of that decade. It was eventually sold to a consortium of dealers who later sold it intact to California dealer/collector/investor Hugh Sconyers. For the next few years, Sconyers added to the collection. He was able to include a number of coins that were significantly finer than the original Elrod coins but which, at the same time, were of similar quality and appearance to the Elrod coins that were retained. In the middle part of the 1990s, Sconyers decided to sell the collection and it was purchased by Winthrop Carner, a New York dealer who specialized in rare gold coins. Carner proceeded to break up the collection and began selling coins to an eager audience of new collectors. The majority of the coins went to two collectors: William Miller from Michigan and Paul Dingler from North Carolina. Carner later sold the remainder of the Elrod collection back to Sconyers who then quietly brokered the coins to other collectors through a small number of dealers.
In February 1999, some of the Elrod coins were offered for sale as part of the Miller collection in the Heritage Long Beach auction. The pieces in the Dingler Collection remain off the market and the other Elrod coins are owned by a number of collectors and investors. The Elrod collection was unquestionably the finest set of Charlotte coins ever formed. Elrod was fortunate to begin collecting these coins at a time when he had little competition and nice, original Charlotte coins could still be found from time to time. The Elrod pedigree carries a great deal of weight among Charlotte collectors as it is an assurance that a coin is not only among the finest known examples of its respective issue but that it is choice and original as well.
On the PCGS label, the coin is pedigree to Elrod-Stell??. The last letter or two is covered by the CAC sticker. It appears to be Stella or Stellar. I have not been able to trace this collection. Here is the image of the label. Any help would be apricated.
The Hansen GEM appeared in a Heritage 1999 Auction in Long Beach, FL. The coin was highlighted as: Gem 1842-C Quarter Eagle--"The Finest Known Charlotte Quarter Eagle of Any Date". I wonder after 20 years if this statement stands true today? The auctioneer described the coins as: The 1842-C is one of the scarcest Charlotte quarter eagles in all grades. And yet it remains one of the most underrated with few other than specialists aware of its true rarity. Perhaps no more than 55-65 pieces are known in all grades with the majority of those grading VF or less. In XF and AU condition it is a very rare issue, and currently only two pieces are known in mint condition. Everything about this coin is atypical for the issue. Beginning with the strike, there is faint but unmistakable detail on the hair curls, the word LIBERTY is well defined, the peripheral stars well struck at the top of that side, and on the reverse only the eagle's left (facing) leg is weak. Soft, frosted mint luster covers both sides of this reddish-golden gem. The only marks of any consequence are a couple of shallow, angling scratches in the left obverse field that form a sideways V. This is the finest known example of this major Charlotte rarity, and it is four points better than the #2 coin on the Condition Census.
I do not know the recent history of the amazing coin. All I can say from online information, the coin made its way into the hands of John Brush and David Lawrence Rare Coins. Interesting according to auction information, this coin was not directly placed in the Hansen Collection as many of the DLRC coins are. The coin was placed in auction and Dell Loy Hansen had to win the coin by bidding. DLRC described the coins as: Historically, this coin is deemed to be the finest Charlotte Quarter Eagle in existence today. Of just 6,729 coins, this piece is the finest graded and bests the second finest for the date by 3 whole grades! Predominantly caramel-gold in color this original gem showcases an impressively sharp strike for the issue. Distraction free surfaces displays touches of glowing orange reflectivity in the central fields framing the central devices on both sides.
The CAC Approved GEM realized $182,500. This is a new auction record breaking the record obtained by the same coin the 1999 sale realizing $90,85. The highest price realized by another coin ($48,400) for the James A. Stack, Sr XF specimen in a 1994 Stacks sale. The coin that Hansen replaced in his collection is an 1842-C AU58, CAC, Cert #83816321, PCGS Pop 3/4. Now Hansen has found his GEM, this AU58 coin would make a nice addition in another Charlotte Collection if Mr. Hansen made it available in the future.
1842-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle MS65
PCGS Pop 1/0, CAC Approved
Certification #33274510, PCGS #7724
PCGS Price Guide Value: $180,00 / Realized $182,500
Provenance: FUN Sale (New England Rare Coin Auctions 1/1982) Lot 1375; Stanley Elrod Collection; Hugh Sconyer Collection; William Miller by private transaction from dealer Winthrop Carner; William Miller Collection / Long Beach Sale (Heritage 2/1999 as MS65 NGC), Lot 6146, Realized $90,850; Internet Auction #1170 (DLRC 5/2021 as MS65 PCGS, CAC), Inventory #2260512, Realized $182,500 (Auction Record), D.L. Hansen Collection.
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Posting in the registry isn't just for points. It can be to simply share a love of coins or track inventory.
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"Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers"???
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
FWIW, I'm not 100% convinced that anything struck before 1828 is unquestionably proof. Doesn't mean I have a problem with some of the earlier things we call proof being called proof. They are what they are, and they're definitely special, so call them whatever you like.
Now, as far as the above four coins are concerned:
The 1834 Quarter is an no-questions proof.
The 1833 CLE Half is also an obvious proof, but it was struck a few years later.
All 1827 "Original" (B-1) Quarters were struck in an open collar are probably just PL.
I've never seen an 1829 Half that I considered an unquestionable proof.
Wait, I'm sorry, what was the question?
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
@currin you mentioned you dont know the recent history of the 1842-c liberty quarter eagle. My notes show that back in August 2016 it was for sale by a well known dealer listed at $215,000. Another dealer offered it shortly thereafter for $190,000. Then the coin was again offered by the initial dealer for $159,500 around Feb 2017. The coin then went up in price by the same dealer around March 2019 for $185,000. The coin looks like it now has a home for quite awhile.
Norweb Collection 1829 Proof Half Dollar Reunion
Just a few weeks ago, the “exceedingly rare” 1827 Half Dollar O-121 was highlighted. The coin was a new addition to the D.L. Hansen Collection of extremely rare and difficult set of early half dollar proofs. A few days ago, a member posted a handful of early proofs here on the Hansen thread. I am still not sure the purpose of the post being they were not Hansen coins. This is a public thread and I believe the freedom to post anything as long as it does not violate our host rules. So, I welcome these posts, because sometimes they motivate me to dig a little deeper. Looking at the 1829 Proof Half Dollar in the grouping, I immediately recognized the coin as the Dr. Charles Link PR64 Specimen. When searching the Hansen sets, I found that he just updated a couple of his sets with a new proof. My research lead me to find two 1829 Proof Half Dollars in the Hansen Collection, with the most recent one an under grade of the original specimen.
If you have been watching my posting for an awhile, you have noticed that I like to tell the “story” about the coin. Most condition census coins have a story to tell. In some cases, there is a story that can be told about the coins immediate family, especially when the coin is from a small family. The early proofs are from small families. The 1829 Proof Half Dollar is from a small family of five to eight coins. Coins Facts give the mintage of eight. The finest graded coin in the family is the Elder-Ryder-Raymond-Pittman PR66 NGC. In a 2013 Heritage sale of this coin, the auctioneer wrote: In his catalog description of the Pittman Collection, David Akers reported that this coin may be the only existing proof example of the O-107 die marriage. Perhaps only three other proof half dollars of this date are known, including the Norweb O-108 and O-112 half dollars, and an O-111 variety certified PR63 by NGC. There may be only four total 1829 proof half dollars, and each one appears to be a different variety. This is the finest proof known for the date.
Since the writing of the description, the fifth (a second O-108) specimen has surfaced which I will call the prodigal daughter. The little girl left home early in life and went aboard where she lived for nearly two centuries. In a fall 2013 Heritage sale, it was written: This is the same variety as the first Norweb 1829 proof half dollar. That collection also had a proof example of O-112. Until the present piece made its debut appearance to the numismatic community, five proof examples of the 1829 half dollar were known, and each was a different variety. The present Gem proof is the second proof identified from the O-108 die pair. Only one of the now six known proofs is finer than this piece. Actually, I believe there are two finer.
Well, you can quickly see the Heritage count is off my one. Heritage’s description between January 2013 to September 2013, includes an O-106 specimen. Although included in the Heritage roster, I cannot confirm the uncertified O-106 proof specimen that sold in Bowers and Merena sale in 1985 as lot 2628. The newly certified fifth coin from abroad was from the Noblesse Collection. It is said that the coin was obtained by a European noble while visiting this country in the middle 19th century and retained by the same family until the present time. The coin was certified as the Second Finest Proof 1829 PR65 NGC. The coin was crossed to PR64+ PCGS and currently resides in the Coinbert Registry Collection. It is a PCGS POP 1/1 described by owner as: A wickedly toned lavender and teal O-108 proof half dollar. If only this coin could tell us all the great collections it has resided in over the last two centuries. Only 4 proof 1829 half dollars have been graded by PCGS.
The roster that I assembled from Coin Facts and auctions confirms five known specimens. There are three other unique specimens that have not been certified or comfirmed. Lastly, I have noted the Eliasberg SP specimen which is probably a prooflike that should not be counted as a proof. The following is my roster of the known Proof Half Dollars of 1829:
1. Pittman Specimen, PR66 NGC, O-107, Thomas Elder's 67th Sale (10/1912); Hillyer Ryder (1945); Wayte Raymond; New Netherlands 50th Sale (12/1957), lot 588; John Jay Pittman (David Akers, 5/1998), lot 1491, where it realized $46,750; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/1999), lot 6741, unsold; Sebring Collection (American Numismatic Rarities 1/2004), lot 1473; FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2007), lot 974, where it brought $69,000; The Greensboro Collection / US Coin FUN Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2013), Lot 5634, Realized $58,750.
2. Hansen / Norweb Specimen, PR65 PCGS, CAC, O-108, Norweb Collection, Part III (Bowers & Merena 11/1988 as PR63) Lot 3095, Realized $16,500; FUN US Coin Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2014 as PR64 PCGS) Lot 5247, Realized $102,812.50 (Auction Record); Private Transaction (NFC 3/2017), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. Coinbert Specimen, PR64+ PCGS, O-108, The Noblesse Collection / US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 9/2013 as PR65 NGC ) Lot 6433, Realized $55,813; Coinbert Registry Collection.
4. Link Specimen, PR64 PCGS, O.111a, The Globus/Shulman Auction (Stack's, 12/1998 as PR63 NGC), lot 1362; 71st Anniversary Sale (Stack's, 10/2006), lot 2755, Realized $21,850; Rosemont CSNS Signature & Platinum Night US Coin Auction (Heritage 4/2011), lot 5146, Realized $48,875; Pre-Long Beach Auction - U.S. Coins (Goldberg 2/2013) lot 1321, Realized $42,550; CSNS US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 4/2017 as PR63 NGC, CAC) lot 4048, Realized $39,950; Dr. Charles Link Registry Collection as PR64 PCGS.
5. Hansen / Norweb Specimen, O-112, Small Letters, Proof-63 PCGS, (Hollinbeck Coin December 1954), lot 730; Mrs. R. Henry Norweb; Norweb Collection, Part III (Bowers and Merena 11/1988), lot 3097, Realized $5,720; Russell J. Logan & Gilbert G. Steinberg Collections (Bowers and Merena 11/2002 as PR63 NGC), lot 1463, Realized $16,100; US Coin Signature Auction (Heritage 7/2008, lot 1687, Realized 25,300; Rarities Night (Stacks Bowers 3/2021), lot 4100, Realized $60,000; Private Transaction (DLRC 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
6. Unique Specimen, Proof Uncertified, O-111 US & Foreign Sale (Sotheby's 12/1998), lot 266, Realized $19,800. No Auction appearance in 20 years.
7. Unique Specimen, PR66 Uncertified, O106, Bowers and Merena (1/1985), lot 2628. No Auction appearance in 35 years.
8. Unique Specimen, Proof Uncertified, O.105, Phillip G. Strauss Collection, sold privately, seen by Walter Breen in 1951. No auction appearance known.
Note: Eliasberg Specimen, George H. Earle (Henry Chapman, 6/1912), lot 2936; J.M. Clapp; John H. Clapp; Clapp Estate (privately via Stack's 1942); Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; Eliasberg Collection (Bowers and Merena April 1997), Lot 1852; Westmoreland Collection of Early Bust Halves (Heritage, January, 2008 as SP63 NGC), Lot 2872; realized $13,800. In the 1997 Eliasberg catalog, the coin was headlined as “Notable 1829 O-111 Half Dollar, Chapman: Proof”. Although, in the description, it was described as: MS63 Prooflike, called a Proof by Henry Chapman. This coin should not be counted in the proof rosters.
D.L. Hansen Collection at 25% complete for this 24-piece early half dollar collection. The 1829 PR65 Cert #28748307 is CAC Approved, POP 1/0, finest certified by PCGS from the Norweb Collection. This purchase adds the second 1829 PR65 Half Dollar. There are no PCGS sets that will accept both coins, even though they are two different die varieties. This purchase reunites the sisters as they appeared in Norweb Collection for many years.
1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar. O-112, Small Letter, Proof-63, Unique for Die State, Ex: Norweb
Of the eight minted, this coin is the lowest graded of the four certified by PCGS, POP 1/3. The other Hansen-Norweb Specimen in the sole finest PCGS POP 1/0 specimen. Between the two Hansen coins are the Coinbert POP 1/1 and the Link POP 1/2. We discussed a few weeks ago there is one other serious early half dollar proof player, “Dr. Duke”. He does not have the 1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar Proof. If the Pittman PR66 NGC Specimen will cross, it would make a great addition to the Duke Collection. Is Legend’s Black Cat a fifth player? I don’t know because the creature are very nocturnal by nature.
The Hansen 1829 Proof-63 Half Dollar has appeared in modern auctions four times. One of the more recent appearance was the Bowers and Merena, 11/1988 sale of the Norweb Collection, Part III. Prior sale, the coin is attributed as a Hollinbeck Coin that sold in December 1954. In the Norweb sale, the coin appeared in lot 3097 as PR63 and realized $5,720. The coin sold in auction with her Norweb sister that was in lot 3095. The sister coin realized $16,500 also as a PR63. Both carried the same grade in auction, but buyer’s interests were significant different. The next appearance was again in a Bowers & Merena sale. The sale was contributed to Russell J. Logan & Gilbert G. Steinberg Collections. In this 11/2002 sale, the coin realized $16,100 as a PR63 NGC.
The last appearance was a Stacks Bowers sale a couple months ago in March 2021. The coin was highlighted as: Unique Proof 1829 O-112 Half Dollar, The Norweb Specimen, 1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar, O-112, Unique as a Proof, Small Letters. Proof-63 (PCGS). It was described as: An old friend, this is the third time that we have had the privilege of bringing this significant rarity to auction. The first was in our (Bowers and Merena's) November 1988 sale of the Norweb Collection, Part III, where we described it as: "1829 O-112. Proof-63. Mostly brilliant surfaces change to a whisper of light gold at the borders. The Proof surface is interrupted by a few areas of semi-frost on the obverse. The reverse is full Proof throughout, including within the shield stripes. The overall aspect is superb, and the coin stands as one of the finest Proof representatives of this date and variety."
Although all five known specimens are sisters, the auctioneer conjects they are not twins born on the same day: The 1829 half dollar is exceedingly rare in this format. Once again, the mintage is unknown, although undoubtedly limited. With specimens of the Proof 1829 confirmed from the O-107, O-108, O-111a and O-112 die pairings, the Mint obviously received orders for these special coins on separate occasions throughout the year. The experts at PCGS CoinFacts account for just six to eight Proofs extant from all die marriages, the example offered here the only one of the Overton-112 variety. An impressive provenance further enhances the significance and desirability of this captivating specimen.
I am not sure why Mr. Hansen chose to add this coin to his collection when he already had the finest PCGS specimen. I do not believe the coin was purchased by Mr. Hansen directly in the Stacks Bowers Auction. Due to the delay timing in the update, I believe the coin was purchased privately from David Lawrence Rare Coins. The two Norweb coins have a look that they do belong together. I can certainly imagine them stored together and in the same manner. Images for the two Hansen Proofs, you be the judge.
Provenances: See #2 and #5 above.
1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar, O-112, PR63
PCGS POP 1/3, Unique for Die Variety
Certification #38497793, PCGS #408337
PCGS Price Guide Value: unknown / Realized $60,000 (3/2021)
Ex: Hollinbeck / Norweb
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1829 Capped Bust Half Dollar, O-108, PR65
PCGS POP 1/0, CAC Approved
Certification #28748307, PCGS #6208
PCGS Price Guide Value: $110,000 / Private Transaction
Ex: Norweb Specimen
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Capped Bust Half Dollar Upgrade
The Basic set of Capped Bust Halves is a popular set, requiring only 33 coins. Only a few are moderately scarce; the 1815/2, the 1839-O and the 1807. However none of these will present a major challenge as just over a dozen Set Registry participants have completed this set. - PCGS Registry
We recent saw an Early Proof Half Dollar, today let’s take a closer look at a mint state. The last update for early half dollars was about a year ago when I featured the 1807 Bearded Goddess. In fact the last few updates for early half dollars have been for major variety coins. The Capped Bust Half Dollars Basic, Circulation Strikes (1807-1839) Set is not one of Mr. Hansen’s strongest series. I would contribute the lack of success directly to the strong competition in this series. You have to start with Dr. Charles Link, PCGS Hall of Fame Collector with more than three decades of building an early half dollar set that marvels even the legendary Brett Pogue half dollars. Dr. Link’s accomplishments extend beyond the basic set. In the PCGS bio, his half dollars are described as: This set receives our highest honor this year with its induction into the PCGS Set Registry Hall of Fame. With a daunting 610 coins needed for completion this set this set achieves an incredible 97.05% completeness with an amazing grade average of 58.95! The set includes both die states of the very rare 1817/4 including the finest known example. The commitment needed to assemble a set of this magnitude is very impressive and serves as an example of one of the most difficult challenges in U.S. Coin collections. Chuck is a true CBH nut! His passion and commitment are amazing. As great as his collection is he isn't done yet and has more surprises in store for us!
“The Link Early American Silver Date Set of Lettered and Reeded Edge Capped Bust Half Dollars” consist only 33 coins and each one is an amazing handpicked condition census beauty. If that is not enough, there are two other strong players in this series: Mr. Perfection and the Chicago Collection. So, you can see nice condition census PCGS specimens are difficult to coins to come by. Currently, the D.L. Hansen Collection is #6 on the all-time finest PCGS registry for the set.
The Hansen set is nice set. The PCGS grade range is from choice MS63 to select GEM MS67. With this purchase, the set has two coins tied for finest, 1826 MS67, POP 3/0 and this new addition, 1810 50C MS66, POP 2/0. Let’s learn a little more about this coin.
1810 Capped Bust Half Dollars, MS66
The mintage for the coin is 1,276,276 which sound like a lot. Coin Facts estimates 4500 survived in all grades with 120 in mint grade. The survival for GEM is where it becomes very difficult. Coin Facts estimates 4. I believed there are at least five proven worthy of the GEM status. PCGS has certified three: 1-MS65 and 2-MS66. NGC has certified a ten, 7-MS65 and 3-MS66. Many of them are duplicates I would assume. Coin Facts Condition Census reports five GEMS, the three PCGS coins and two MS66 NGC coins from the Louis Eliasberg Collection. The following is a roster of the five GEM condition coins. With the Hansen purchase, all three of the PCGS GEMs are now in strong registry sets.
1. Link/Green/Newman Specimen, MS66 PCGS, CAC, O-108, "Colonel" E.H.R. Green Collection; Partnership of Eric P. Newman & Burdette G. Johnson (St. Louis Stamp & Coin Co.); Eric P. Newman, who paid $5; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society (Heritage 11/2013 as MS66 NGC, CAC) lot 33440, Realized $64,625 (Auction Record); Dr. Charles Link (PCGS HOF Registry Collection).
2. Hansen Specimen, MS66 PCGS, CAC, O-101, Purchased in Private Transaction (4/2021) D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. Coinbert Specimen, MS66 PCGS, O-110, Douglas L. Noblet Collection (Bowers & Merena 1/1999 as MS64 PCGS) lot 19) Realized $5,980; Long Beach Signature Sale (Heritage 10/2001) lot 6555, realized $4,945; Baltimore, MD. Signature Sale (Heritage 7/2003 as MS65 NGC) lot 7379, Realized $7,188; Classics Sale (ANR 1/2004) lot 464, Realized $5,980; Larry Hanks, sold privately (3/2004) D. Brent Pogue Collection; The D. Brent Pogue Collection, Part II (Stacks Bowers 9/15 as MS65 PCGS) lot 2009, realized $25,850; Chicago (PCGS Registry Set)
4. Eliasberg Specimen, MS66 NGC, O-108, George H. Earle, Jr. Collection; Henry Chapman 6/1912; John H. Clapp Collection, sold intact in 1942 to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr., Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. (Bowers & Merena 4/1997) lot 1711, Realized $9,075; West Palm Beach, FL (Summer FUN) Signature Coin Auction (Heritage 6/2008 as MS66 NGC) Lot 978; Realized $18,400.
5. Eliasberg/Kaufman Specimen, MS66 NGC PCGS, O-106a, George H. Earle, Jr. Collection; Henry Chapman 6/1912; - John H. Clapp Collection, sold intact in 1942 to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection (Bowers & Merena 4/1997) lot 1712, Realized $16,500; Phil Kaufman Collection; The Joseph C. Thomas Collection (Heritage 4/2009) lot 2407, Realized $17,250, (Heritage 8/2010) lot 3143,not sold.
The providence is not known for this coin as it for the other four GEMs. I am sure some additional research could turn up something, but I was not able to find anything in recent auctions. I believe the coin was purchased in a private transaction from a company listed on eBay as “The Best Treasures for You”. It appears to be a store that only does business on eBay. The ask price in the eBay listing was $59,500. In the listing information, the coin die state was attributed to O-101, which makes all five the 1810 GEMs unique. The coin replaces a Hansen labeled MS64, POP 17/4. The Hansen set will need more upgrades to continue to make positive movement in the rankings.
Provenance: Purchased in a Private Transaction (4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection
1810 Capped Bust Half Dollars, MS66
PCGS POP 2/0, Tied with finest known
Certification #38327129, PCGS #6095
PCGS Price Guide $50,000 / Unknown, private purchased
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
PR? Typo?
Typo. Corrected.
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Another dip in the Barry Stuppler well
It appears whenever Mr. Hansen has a thirst for a Morgan, he circles back to Stuppler & Company for a little satisfaction. It is no doubt the Stuppler / Hansen connection is strong. The relationship dates back to the origins of the collection about five years ago. With Barry Stuppler handling the sale of the Illinois Collection of Morgan Dollars, he has a nice supply on his website. A quick search today of Illinois coins resulted in 54 hits. With the Illinois set retiring on 2/12/2020 after reaching the runner-up spot all-time, the liquidation of the coins have taken more than a year. That may not be all that bad, because Barry Stuppler reported the set was assembled over 14 years. The remaining 54 coins are priced from $10,000 to $790,000. There are still more that 18 six figure coins available. I have often wondered why Mr. Hansen is not more aggressive with purchasing the Illinois coins. By purchasing one at a time, we will be watching this for a long time to come.
Also at times, Mr. Hansen will take a drink from another well, which happened recently. He purchased a Morgan Dollar from Larry Shapiro Rare Coin. The 1883-O MS67+ CAC Approved coin is not that rare and expensive. The asked price on the website was $7,495. The coin recently sold in Heritage Central States US Coins Signature Auction in April 2021. The coin realized $6,300. Without knowing how close the ask price was to the amount that Mr. Hansen paid, it appear Mr. Shapiro made in the neighborhood of $1,000. With this purchase, The D.L. Hansen Collection replaces a MS67 non-CAC specimen that was purchase in Legend Rare Coin Auctions, 9/2018.
The Hansen 97-piece Morgan Dollars Basic, Circulation Strikes (1878-1921) Set is currently the best set in the Registry. In a few days, it should receive the 2021 best in registry award for the first time. I doubt it will be the last. I don’t see any urgency by Mr. Hansen to move up in the All-Time Finest rankings with Jack Lee, Illinois Set, and the Coronet Collection out front.
We should see the set continue to improve. I would not be surprise to see Mr. Hansen take another drink from the Barry Stuppler well of Illinois Morgan Dollars.
1894 Morgan Dollar MS65+, CAC, Ex: Illinois Set
The mintage for the coin is 110,000. Coin Facts estimates 8,990 survived in all grades with 6,490 in mint grade. Coin Facts estimate 125 is the survival for GEM. That sounds like a lot, but is certainly not enough to cover the thirst of the Morgan Collectors. The basic PCGS registry has almost 1000 (978) sets in the registry. How many Morgan set collectors outside the registry is unknown and hard to imagine.
Expect Q. David Bowers stated: The 1894 dollar has the lowest circulation strike mintage of any Morgan dollar except the 1893-S (not including the 1895). As such, they have always been popular with collectors. Although quantities of Mint State coins existed in the 1950s and early 1960s, nearly all have been dispersed by now. Among Philadelphia Mint Morgan dollars, the 1894 is the second rarest (after 1901) in Mint State. Examples are offered for sale with regularity, but in the modern market it is seldom that even a small group is found. Most coins are in lower Mint State ranges. The demand for the latter is softened somewhat by the availability of high-grade Proofs. The striking quality of Mint State 1894 Morgan dollars ranges from average to sharp. The lustre on most well-struck pieces is frosty and attractive. On the other hand, average to below average coins are apt to have weak breast feathers on the eagle, and have unsatisfactory lustre. Due this low availability, Expert Ron Guth warned: BEWARE OF ALTERED COINS WITH REMOVED MINTMARKS.
There are six PCGS coins graded finer than the Hansen/Illinois MS65+ Specimen. The top coin is a MS66+ specimen from the Jack Lee 2 Collection. The coin resided in Coronet Collection before being offered by Legend Rare Coin in 2015, the coin realized $152,750 (Auction Record). The coin currently is one of the centerpieces in the Wurt Collection (PCGS Set Registry). Next, there is a five-coin group of MS66 specimens. They are almost six figure coins ($95,000 according to the PCGS Price Guide).
As stated, the coin was purchased from Barry Stuppler at Mint State Gold (MSG).The ask for the coin was $46,000. The coin replaces a MS64 with POP of 288/67. No question this was a nice and much needed upgrade. We have a long hot summer coming, so let’s see if Mr. Hansen gets thirsty again.
Provenance: Illinois Set Collection (PCGS Set Registry), offered by Barry Stuppler (Mint State Gold 4/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1894 Morgan Dollar MS65+
PCGS POP 6/6, CAC Approved
Certification #37728252, PCGS #7228
PCGS Value Guide: $40,000 / Asked $46,000
Ex: Illinois Set
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Another Charlotte Quarter Eagle Upgrade
Comparable in overall rarity to the 1849-C and equally difficult to obtain in choice condition. Generally underrated as a rarity (as are most quarter eagles) and any specimen better than EF should be considered highly desirable. Always softly struck on the eagle's legs and on the feathers of the arrows. - David Akers (1975/88)
A few days ago, I posted an update on the Charlotte Quarter Eagle series. That coin was considered "The finest known Charlotte quarter eagle of any date.". Naturally, the coin cannot be topped, but Dell Loy Hansen can still continue to improve the set. The Charlotte Gold $2-1/2 Basic, Circulation Strikes (1838-1860) Registry Set requires 19 coins. The Hansen Collection is a lone wolf for this set. The set was created in June 2018 and was complete at time of creation. In the three years, there have been only four coins upgraded. Oddly enough, two of them took place in the past few weeks.
The set is still short of having a GPA weight of at least 60. The current rating is 59.84. The set range from AU55 to the coin reported a couple weeks ago, the MS65 1842-C quarter eagle. Of the 19 coins, two are PCGS POP 1/0 (10.5%), with three others tied for finest. Therefore, more than 25% of the set is from the top of the PCGS population report. Another eight coins are PCGS POP Top Five. This makes more the 68% of the set condition census. Six coins are outside the top five, with the 1838-C $2.50 AU55, POP 17/21 bring the best candidate for upgrading. According to Coin Facts rarity and survival estimates report, there should be at least eight in mint state grade. This is the link to see the 19 coin set,
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/gold/branch-mint-gold/charlotte-gold-2-1-basic-set-circulation-strikes-1838-1860/alltimeset/169634
The new 1850-C $2.50 MS62 coin should be a solid condition census top five. The top grade coins are a pair of MS63 in the NGC report. Only one is known and confirmed. Could the second NGC MS62 be a duplicate? Or could it now be in PCGS holder, maybe the MS62+? Or a legitimate second choice specimen that has not shown up in auction? One of the NGC MS63 is from the Charleston Collection and appeared in American Numismatic Rarities Auction, September 2005. This was from The C.L. Lee Sale and the coin realized $25,300. The coin could be the sole finest 1850-C $2.50 but cannot confirm. It does not appear to have been seen in the past 15 years.
In the PCGS report, the new Hansen coin is tied for the second finest. The PCGS finest certified is a MS62+ specimen that was offered in Stack’s Bowers November 2012 Baltimore sale. The coin was offered with a reserved of $32,000. The coin was passed, and has not reappeared in 18 years.
1850-C Charlotte Liberty Quarter Eagle MS62, POP 4/1
Expert Doug Winter wrote: The 1850-C is less rare than its relatively low mintage figure suggests. It is the second most available Charlotte quarter eagle from the 1850s. It is usually seen well worn and is rare in properly graded Uncirculated. The 1850-C quarter eagle is typically found in VF and EF grades. It is scarce in properly graded AU and most at this level are no better than AU50. This is a rare coin in the higher AU grades and very rare in Uncirculated with an estimated four to six examples currently believed to exist.
Coin Facts estimates 160 in all grades, with only seven in mint condition, with none greater than Choice MS63. PCGS does not have a choice coin in their holder. They have graded 1-MS60, 7-MS61, 4-MS62, and the sole finest MS62+, totaling 13 coins, with possible resubmissions. NGC POP report has 1-MS60, 11-MS61, 1-MS62, and 2-MS63, totaling 15 coins. Are there 28 induvial coins in holders? With current Coin Facts report estimating only seven in mint condition, the two sources just don’t align.
After reviewing images from current auctions, I was only able to trace one past appearance to the Hansen coin. It appeared in Heritage’s ANA US Coins Signature Auction in Chicago in 8/2014. The NGC MS61 coin was headlines as “Semiprooflike Fields”. The Variety is stated as being the scarcer of the two known varieties. The auctioneer described the coins as: The 1850-C is among the more available C-mint quarter eagles from the 1850s, but is still itself elusive, as only 175 to 225 examples are believed to survive in all grades. Most extant pieces exhibit light to moderate wear, and pieces grading AU or finer are seldom seen. Winter estimates as few as four to six truly Uncirculated examples exist today which, if at all accurate, reveals the certified population data to be highly inflated. This representative exhibits bright green-gold color overall, with a degree of semiprooflike mirroring in the fields. Scattered abrasions define the grade, and the central devices show a touch of the usual softness.
The coin replaces a pair of Hansen MS61, Pop 7/5 specimens. The first specimen is the MS61, Cert# 81628829. This is the Hansen pedigreed coin that I believe was purchased from Numismatic Financial Corporation, Inc. (NFC) in the 2016 timeframe. This company was one of Mr. Hansen sources for early purchases to his collection. If you like to see the coin in the collection, then look in D. L. Hansen Liberty Head $2-1/2 Gold Set https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/gold/liberty-head-2-1-gold-major-sets/liberty-head-2-1-gold-basic-set-circulation-strikes-1840-1907/alltimeset/148356
The other MS61, Cert# 38196278, may have been purchased in Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles Auction at Pre-Long Beach U.S. & World Coin sale. In the June 2020 auction, the coin realized $12,000. I certainly would not be surprised if the coin was purchased through David Lawrence Rare Coins after the auction. The coin is currently available for purchase on the DRLC website, but still show in as active coin in the Hansen sets. The coin can be viewed in set named Diana's Set of Liberty Quarter Eagles. https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/alltimeset/163531
The MS62 specimen was offered on the Rare Coin Wholesaler website in March 2021. The ask on the coin was $26,000. More recently, the coin was offered on David Lawrence Rare Coin website with the listed price of $29,500. The reduced price asked was $28,615. It appears the coin was purchased by a private transaction with DLRC. Will this coin be the last 1850-C Charlotte Liberty Half Eagle purchased for this collection. I am not sure, because there are maybe two or three coins better. With no plans to sale this collection, we could see a new specimen before the collection is sold maybe decades in the future.
Provenance: ANA US Coins Signature Auction (Heritage 8/2014 as MS61 NGC), lot 3761, realized $8,879.48; Private Transaction (DLRC 5/2021 as MS63 PCGS), D.L. Hansen Collection.
1850-C Charlotte Liberty Quarter Eagle MS62
PCGS POP 4/1, “Semiprooflike Fields”
Certification #25602735, PCGS #7756
PCGS Price Guide Value: $25,000 / Private Transaction
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Proof Quarter Eagle Addition
"The Proof 1878 Liberty Head quarter eagle is another favorite date of the series, with just about 10 examples known today. Two examples are in the museum collections of the Smithsonian and the ANS. The chance to purchase this date in Proof rarely occurs. The last examples offered at auction were from the collections of Byron Reed, John Jay Pittman, and Harry W. Bass. The Pittman coin sold for $29,700 in 1998. Pittman purchased the coin from New Netherlands in 1948 for $55. Pittman was famous for purchasing less-famous, but very rare, coins when others did not appreciate them." - Garrett and Guth, few years ago
This past week we have seen a new addition to the collectable proof gold coins in the D.L. Hansen Collection. I call the collector set of gold proofs (1859-1915). Although as I have stated before, the 294-piece collection can be completed, there have not be much evidence that it has happen. Actually, in researching the complete set of this makeup, I have not found a collection or collector that has achieved this difficult feat. I am not saying there is not one from the past or present, and I will continue to look. Just at this point, I have not turned one up. Even the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian institute comes up short. The Collection have an amazing compete set of Liberty Head Double Eagles, but only 93.55% complete for the One Dollar Gold. Ed Trompeter , Hall of Fame for his Gold Proofs, was complete for the eight of the sets that I show below, including the Four Dollar Stellas, but it appear he may not have been complete for three of the Liberty Head Sets, including Half Eagles, Eagles, and Double Eagles. Since the last time I posted this information, I have not found any evidence to dispute the information.
Louis Eliasberg had one of the greatest sets of proof gold, but the collection was mixed with proof and mint strikes. It appears the ratio of the mix was about 85% proof to 15% mint strike. Harry W. Bass, another Hall of Fame Collection known for Gold did not have a compete run of proof gold from 1859-1915. I took a look at the William Cutter Atwater’s catalog. He had very nice runs of Proof Gold starting in 1859, but there were a few pieces here and there that were mint strikes. For example, the Liberty Head Double Eagles were complete proof, except for 1862 in fine condition, 1877 and 1878 brilliant uncirculated condition.
As I have stated before and probably again in the future, PCGS does not have a set to represent this 294-piece collectable gold proof set. I think it would make a beautiful display if Hansen or someone else completes the set someday. Also, it would be nice if PCGS would create registry set. I created the chart below from Registry sets that would comprise the gold set.
So, as you can see, The D.L. Hansen Collection is well on the way for completing this set. With this addition, the set improves to 71.77% complete. For the Bass, Eliasberg, Atwater collection, I think you will find them to be 85-90%. In the Hansen Collection, the number of coins still needed have decreased to 83. This is a four coin decrease from the last time that I provided this update. Three of the new additions are the three eagles purchased from the Gerald Forsythe Collection of PCGS Indian Head Proof Eagles. The three eagle additions were: 1909, 1913, and 1914. This fourth addition is not near that caliber of a coin. The quarter eagle is outside the condition census ream, but is an important and seemly hard specimen to obtain. Let’s take a look at the 1878 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle.
1878 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle, PR62
The official mintage give for this coin is 20. Coin Facts gives the Rarity and Survival Estimates at 12 for all grades. There are three GEMs survivors according to Coin Facts, with maybe one less than PR60. This would place the new Hansen PR62 near the bottom of the population chart. Surely that is true, but credit must be given that the mintage and survival are fairly low. According to expert David Akers): Proofs are extremely rare and the 1878 is, in fact, the rarest post-1859 quarter eagle in proof. At least I know of fewer examples of this date than of any other proof after 1859. I would estimate that only half a dozen or so remain in unimpaired condition, most of which are impounded in museums or prominent collections. Note: All 1878 proof gold is extremely rare even though the reported mintage is similar to that for some other years. Perhaps some of the sets were not sold and were subsequently melted. This was written several decades ago, but the difficulty of the coin remains today.
Since the Eliasberg sale in 1982, the coin has appeared in auction only 17 times. By my math, that is about one time every 28 months. The new Hansen coin appeared in auction last month. The last time before was a July 2019 Heritage Auction where a PR62DAM was sold. One of the top coins (PR65 Deep Cameo) appeared in a Heritage 2018 Auction and realized $52,800 (Auction Record). Is this coin unappreciated?
The coin cannot be traced to any of the auctions prior to the May 2021 David Lawrence Rare Coins Auction. It is possible the coin could be from the 1993 Floyd T. Starr or the 1996 Byron Reed Auctions. Of the 16 appearances, these two cannot be verified due to lack of images and grading. It is more than likely, the coin does not trace to any modern auctions.
The 1878 PR62 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle was obtained in David Lawrence Rare Coin Internet Auction #1167 held on Sunday, May 2, 2021. The coin was described as: A beautiful and extremely uncirculated proof survivor from a mintage of just twenty pieces. Impeccably struck design elements standout nicely against bright, yellow-gold mirrors. Lovely reflectivity and subtle orange tints along the peripherals. A simple description for a simple rare proof issue. The coin realized $17,500 with PCGS price guide value of $21,000. The coin has found a current home in the D.L. Hansen Collection, but it will be interesting to see how long. The coin is the lowest graded coin in 49-piece Liberty Head $2-1/2 Gold, Proof (1859-1907) set. This certainly places the coin at high risk to be taken out of the game.
Provenance: Internet Auction #1167 (DLRC 5/2021), Inventory #2253513, realized $17,500, D.L. Hansen Collection.
1878 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle, PR62
PCGS POP 1/6
Certification #41599113, PCGS #7904
PCGS Coin Guide Value: $21,000 / Realized $17,500
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
The 1878 PCGS PR 62 QE is a nice pick up by Hansen. If there are 12 survivors, by definition it is rare. Factor in that 2 are in museums and one graded by PCGS is 55. That takes it down to 9 available. I bought the only 1878 graded cameo that sold in the Heritage auction in July 2019. I bought at $18,600 which I thought was quite the value for one of the rarest post 1859 proof quarter eagles and mine was CAC approved to boot.
Yes, I think the pcgs pr65 dcam that sold for 52k was very very much underappreciated and my hunch is we will not see that coin in a long time. I think Hansen was smart to pick up his example while he could and at a fair price since quite frankly we may not see another one sold in quite awhile.
1821 Coronet Head Cent Upgrade
The cents of 1821 are unusual for the period in that just two die marriages are known. Both are individually rather common, but they make for a relatively small population of this date overall. The higher prices for 1821 cents are reflective of this scarcity. – NGC Explorer
The 1821 is a fascinating EAC issue. I have enjoyed compiling this information. I have spent more time than normal, but it certainly was fun. The 1821 cent has a interesting story as told by Stacks Bowers: About 1981, a building in Boston was renovated or razed, revealing a cornerstone from its initial construction in 1821. Within the cornerstone were no less than seven cents, placed inside when they were brand new and preserved ever since. All seven were sold in New England Rare Coin Galleries' sale of October 1981, lots 58 through 64, each graded Mint State and aside from some spotting retaining abundant mint color. As noted in Q. David Bowers' American Coin Treasures and Hoards, where the Boston Cornerstone Find is described on pp. 96-97, "adding to their appeal was the appreciation of the 1821 cent as the second scarcest of the late [sic] date large cents." Most of the seven pieces have remained off the market since the 1981 NERCG sale and, indeed, the present example (Hansen new purchase) is making only its third auction appearance since its rediscovery in the Boston cornerstone. The 1991 Noyes census cites this coin as tied for CC#4, and Wright likewise names this coin among the four best of the variety. This date is well recognized as a challenge above EF, and those collectors lucky enough to have fully AU pieces in their cabinets are few in number. This lovely Choice Uncirculated example, with a storied past and most of its original color, would be a highlight in any large cent collection.
Goldberg wrote in 2/2020 about the Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen: A great cent, and it comes with an interesting story. It was discovered along with six others of the date (two of the N-1 variety, four of the N-2 variety) hidden in the cornerstone of an old building being demolished in Boston in 1981. Each was sold in a New England Rare Coin Auctions (NERCA) Long Beach sale in October of that year, lots 58-64. Collector Garry F. Fitzgerald purchased six of the seven 1821 cents.
I was able to identify five of Garry F. Fitzgerald six purchased coins. Seven of the top eight coins on my list are from this discovery. I have been able to confirm only one legacy coin that grades with RB/RD designation. The coin is in the Arizona Registry. The coin is graded MS64RB PCGS and CAC Approved. It can be traced back to the Chapmans and the turn of the 19th century. It is a little surprising that it appear the Brett Pogue Registry set was missing the issue. I have organized my Top Ten list by color designation. Let’s start with the RD Specimens.
RD Specimens – 4 Known
1. High Desert Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #13053257, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 63; Tony Terranova (via Del Bland); Pre-Long Beach Auction #51 / Ted Naftzger Collection Part II, (Goldberg Auctioneers 2/ 2009), Lot #116 realized $39,100, High Desert Registry Set.
2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 58; Garry F. Fitzgerald (Bowers & Merena 8/9/1999) lot 22; Manuel Ahumada Collection (includes the Bowers lot ticket); Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 53; realized $38,188.
3. Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #37128539, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981),Lot 61; Garry Fitzgerald 3/17/2006; Douglas F. Bird Collection, Pre-Long Beach U.S. & World Coin Auction #115 (Goldberg Auctioneers 2/2020), Lot 157, realized $30,000.
4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 64; Gary Fitzgerald; Robert Michael Prescott Collection Sale (American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006 as MS63 RD PCGS), Lot 34, realized $43,700; Keusch, Snow, & Del Zorro Collections Sale, (Stack's 11/2008), lot 3074, realized $70,000 (Auction Record); Rarities Night, featuring the ESM Collection (Stacks Bowers 8/2020 as MS-63 RD PCGS), Lot 1078, Realized $26,400, Dr. Charles Link Collection.
All four of the known RD designated 1821 Large Cents are from the cornerstone in Boston hoard. Also, all four are current certified by PCGS, and there is not a RD example in the NGC population report. In recent auctions, they have been seen six times. The Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen has made three of the six appearances, with the other three only once. Three of the four are graded MS64RD, the Link Specimen grading MS63RD. The Link Specimen holds the auction record of $70,000 from a 2008 Stacks Auction. Two of the four specimens can be found in registry sets: The Link specimen and the MS64RD in the High Desert Registry Set. Three of the four coins are the Newcomb 2 variety. The Fitzgerald / Ahumada MS64RD Specimen is the sole Newcomb 1 variety that can found is red.
RB Specimens – 4 Known
5. Arizona Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #83244992, The Chapmans-John G. Mills, (S. H. & H. Chapman 4/27/1904), lot 1306; Chapmans 11/1904; Allison W. Jackman, Jackman Estate (Henry Chapman 6/28/1918) Lot 754; S. H. Chapman (for $100); Dr. Henry W. Beckwith (S. H. Chapman 4/27/1923) Lot 60; S. H. Chapman; unknown; Teletrade; ANA Sale (Heritage, 8/1996), lot 6526; Manuel Ahumada Collection; Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 54; realized $38,30,550; Arizona Registry Set.
6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, Cert #36087812, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 60; private collector; Robert Michael Prescott Collection Sale (American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006 as MS64RB PCGS), lot 35, Realized $18,400; Collection of Thaddeus A. Tatum III / ANA Rarities Night, (Stacks Bowers 8/2018 as MS63RB PCGS Cert #03649687), Lot 1056, Realized $28,800; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 6/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
7. Fitzgerald Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS63+RB PCGS, Cert #26634175, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), Lot 59; Garry Fitzgerald. Note: The pedigree after Fitzgerald is not certain. Possible link to Pre-Long Beach (Superior Galleries 5/2003 as PCGS MS63RB) Lot 663, realized $14,088 (Not Confirm).
8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS63RB PCGS, Cert #60110319, Interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, then rediscovered circa 1981; Long Beach II Sale (New England Rare Coin 10/1981), lot 62; Garry Fitzgerald; The Joshua and Ally Walsh Collection of United States Cents / (FUN) Signature Auction (Heritage 1/2006), Lot 3033, Realized $29,900; Cardinal Collection Educational Foundation / Pre-Long Beach Elite Auction (Superior 9/2008), Lot 46; realized $58,650 (Auction Record for RB specimen); Americana Sale (Stacks Bowers 1/2013), Lot 13032, Realized $28,200; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 2/2018), D.L. Hansen Collection.
Three of four of the known RB designated 1821 Large Cents are from the cornerstone in Boston hoard. Before the cornerstone discovery, the Arizona Registry Set MS64RB PCGS, CAC Approved Specimen considered the finest known. In a S. H. Chapman 1923 Auction, the coin was plated and cataloged as the "Finest specimen known." Also, all four are currently certified by PCGS. NGC POP report list only one MS64, a sole MS64RB. This coin has not appeared in auction. It may now be in a PCGS holder. In recent auctions, the RBs have been seen seven times. The D.L. Hansen Duplicate MS63RB Specimen has made three of the seven appearances, with new Hansen MS64RB appearing two times. Arizona Registry Set Specimen appeared in a Goldberg Auction in 2017. There is no evidence that the Fitzgerald Specimen N-1, MS63+RB PCGS Specimen has appeared in auction since the original sale in 1981. Two of the four are graded MS64RB, with the previous mention coin grading MS63+RB. The fourth coin is the Hansen Duplicate MS63RB. Interesting, this coin hold the auction record for RB Specimens, realizing $58,650. Two of the four specimens can be found in D.L. Hansen Collection, with the third in Arizona Registry Set . Only one of the four coins is not registered. As with the RD specimens, three of the four coins are the Newcomb 2 variety.
BN Specimens – 12 TPG Choice MS63 and above
9. Norweb Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64BN, Cert # 35409296, John P. Lyman Collection, (S.H. Chapman 11/1913), lot 459; Dr. C.A. Allenburger Collection, (B. Max Mehl's 3/1948), lot 777; Lee G. Agnew Collection, (Abe Kosoff 12/1952), lot 729; Norweb Collection, Part III, (Bowers and Merena 11/1988), lot 2881; ANA Signature Auction, (Heritage 8/2017 as MS63BN, Cert # 84359479),lot 3888, realized $17,625; Baltimore U.S. Coins Auction (Stacks Bowers 3/2018 as MS63BN, Cert # 84359479), lot 2180, realized $21,600.
10. Dan Holmes Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64BN, Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman, 6/14), lot 1850; Henry C. Hines; Charles Wheeler (Stack's, 1976 ANA), lot 372; Jerry A. Bobbe; R.E. Naftzger, Jr.; George M. Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman 6/24/1914) Lot 1850; Henry C. Hines; Charles Wheeler / ANA Sale (Stack's 1976), lot 372; Jerry Bobbe; R. E. Naftzger, Jr.; Early American Coppers sale (1989), lot 247; Denis W. Loring (12/98); John B. MacDonald; Wes Rasmussen Collection / (FUN) Signature Sale (Heritage 1/13/05 as MS63BN NGC) Lot 3460, realized $11,500; Pre-Long Beach Auction #59 (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2010 as MS63BN PCGS), Lot 152, realized $24,150 (Auction Record for BN specimen); Dane B. Nielsen Collection; Dan Holmes Collection
There are eight coins in the RB/RD designation. I will complete the top ten with two BN Specimens. The Norweb 1821 N-1, MS64BN Specimen is the sole finest graded in BN. There are seven MS63BN PCGS and four MS63BN NGC. I am thinking the actual total is about seven without duplicates. From this grouping, I have chosen the Dan Holmes Specimen to represent the tenth spot. The coin has an impeccable pedigree including R.E. Naftzger, Jr. In addition, the coins hold the auction record for BN Specimens realizing $24,150. There may be other worthy candidates. The registry indicates Louis Eliasberg owned a MS63BN specimen. The top NGC coin to appear in auction is a MS63 Brown, Ex: Naftzger coin from The Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection sold in 2014. So, most of the high grade 1821 Large Cents are found in PCGS holders. A scan through the PCGS registry sets, most coins can be located.
1821 Coronet Head Cent MS64RB, Ex: Robert Michael Prescott
The official mintage given for this coin is 389,000. Coin Facts gives the Rarity and Survival Estimates at 4,000 for BN designation, 20 for RB, and four for RD. The 20 for RB seems high to me. Interesting, there are no GEMs survivors according to Coin Facts. The new Hansen coin is tied with one other as finest with RB designation.
The coin can be traced to the group of seven that was interred in a cornerstone in Boston in 1821, and rediscovered circa 1981. It has not been confirmed if this coin was one of the six purchased by Gary Fitzgerald in the New England Rare Coin auction held on 10/1981. I believe it was in the Fitzgerald Collection, but have not been able to confirm. The coin made its way into Robert Michael Prescott Collection. It was offered in public auction for the second time as MS63RB PCGS in a 2006 American Numismatic Rarities Auction. The last appearance was a 2018 Stacks Bowers Auction from the Thaddeus A. Tatum III Collection. The coin was offered as MS63RB PCGS Cert #03649687, realizing $28,800.
Since the 2018 Stacks Bowers Auction, the coin has been upgraded to a MS64RB PCGS. The coin was recently offered by David Lawrence Rare Coins. The coin was described as: Gorgeous remaining red tints in the obverse fields with bright golden red reverse surfaces. One of the finest in existence for this key date in the middle Large Cent years, a few scattered spots account for the color designation, but we have seen darker, less attractive pieces designated as "Red" in recent years. Tied with 2 other pieces at PCGS as the finest graded. On eBay, the ask price was $44,200 and $44,500 on the Collector’s Corner website. The PCGS Guide Price is $50,000. The coin was purchase by Mr. Hansen in a private transaction.
Provenance: See #6 above.
1821 Coronet Head Cent MS64RB
PCGS POP 2/4
Certification #36087812, PCGS #1622
PCGS Coin Guide Value: $50,000 / Unknown
Ex: Robert Michael Prescott
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Regarding the 1821 Large Cents, I had tracked the 7 hoard coins recently and have some additional info.
-Under number "7. Fitzgerald Specimen", the note "Possible link to Pre-Long Beach (Superior Galleries 5/2003 as PCGS MS63RB) Lot 663, realized $14,088 (Not Confirm)." actually applies to "8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen" as the 2003 coin was lot 62 in the 1981 auction. This can be seen in the catalog posted by the Newman Numismatic Portal:
https://archive.org/details/prelongbeachelit2003supe/page/128/mode/2up
However, it did make a different auction appearance not listed above. It was in Goldberg's June 2013 Long Beach Coin Auction but was withdrawn. When looking at the auction on their website there is no photo or lot description, only the words WITHDRAWN and UNSOLD by the lot number 405. I did find that the description would show up if doing a search for 1821 within the sale and did a screen capture of that shown below. It even has a photo on the cover of the catalog. So all seven have since appeared in an auction catalog after 1981 if not actually auctioned.
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-Looks like a typo within "6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen". The grade at the "American Numismatic Rarities, 1/2006" was PCGS-63 RB rather than MS64RB.
-Not sure if the auction record price for RD is accurate. Under "4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115" it shows "Keusch, Snow, & Del Zorro Collections Sale, (Stack's 11/2008), lot 3074, realized $70,000 (Auction Record)". That is what CoinFacts shows also. The problem is that the paper prices realized for the catalog omit it which should mean it was unsold yet Stack's Bowers online archives show it bringing $80,500 (that would be a $70,000 hammer price which is what CoinFacts shows along with a mysterious grade of NG0). So it is unclear whether Stack's paper PR or the Stack's Bowers website is the correct one. Also not sure where the $70,000 came from as both the paper PR and website include the buyers fee; possibly a reserve hammer that was not met got reported somewhere? Maybe Stack's Bowers can verify if it sold or not.
-The 5. Arizona Registry Set Specimen sold for $18,150 at the listed ANA Sale (Heritage, 8/1996), lot 6526. It also shows $30,550 on Golderg's site for Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 54 rather than the price you show. Got the opportunity to see this one long ago and it was quite nice.
-The 2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991 shows on Golderg's site as UNSOLD for the Pre-Long Beach Auction #98 U.S. Coins (Goldberg Auctioneers 6/2017) Lot 53 appearance rather than the $38,188 that CoinFacts shows. The Prices Realized for the auction also omit it. Also the (Bowers & Merena 8/9/1999) lot 22 auction appearance brought $10,925 as a raw MS-60. Here is a link to the page showing this lot:
https://archive.org/details/raritiessale1999bowe_f3p7/page/37/mode/1up
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The NuTilt luster in motion views on this coin (the new 6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen) were what I chanced across just before they announced NuTilt. I thought this one came out especially well with the reverse showing how red it is and the toning spot by the F in OF looking far less distracting to me than still photos indicate.
Below is a link to the NuTilt showing the luster. It defaults to obverse, which also looks nicer than still pics. Click on reverse in lower left corner to bring it up:
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https://davidlawrence.com/tiltview.html?cert_id=36087812&referrer_id=dl
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Here is some of the info from the 1981 catalog, which also included four 1804 Unc Half Cents in the hoard - one is now PCGS-64+ RD and brought $117,500 in 2017. That Half Cent lot states "This coin and the previous three lots were recently discovered during the razing of one of the historic buildings in Boston’s financial district...".
Wonder who had access to original Unc Half Cents minted 17 years earlier unless possibly all the coins were supplied by a bank with old stock on hand. Or possibly they came from two different parts of the same building constructed at different times. Don't recall seeing definitve answers about that.
The 1981 prices realized for the 1821 Large Cents:
Lot 58 $4,675 = the above "2. Fitzgerald / Ahumada Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #83244991"
Lot 59 $6,050 = the above "7. Fitzgerald Specimen, 1821 N-1, MS63+RB PCGS, Cert #26634175"
Lot 60 $4,950 = the above "6. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RB PCGS, Cert #36087812"
Lot 61 $6,050 = the above "3. Fitzgerald / Byrd Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #37128539"
Lot 62 $2,310 = the above "8. Hansen Duplicate Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS63RB PCGS, Cert #60110319"
Lot 63 $3,960 = the above "1. High Desert Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS64RD PCGS, Cert #13053257"
Lot 64 $7,700 = the above "4. Dr. Charles Link Registry Set Specimen, 1821 N-2, MS-63 RD PCGS, CAC Approved, Cert #02348115"
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https://archive.org/details/longbeachsaletwo1981newe/page/n25/mode/2up
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https://archive.org/details/longbeachsaletwo1981newe/page/n34/mode/2up
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https://archive.org/details/longbeachsaletwo1981newe/page/n3/mode/2up
"To Be Esteemed Be Useful" - 1792 Birch Cent --- "I personally think we developed language because of our deep need to complain." - Lily Tomlin
Liberty Double Eagle Upgrade
The last update on Liberty Double Eagles was a couple months ago. The coin replaced was the 1881 Liberty Double Eagle. I wrote in detail about the incredible D. L. Hansen Collection of Liberty Double Eagles. I hit on the fact that Mr. Hansen purchased the fabulous set from the AWA Collection as the foundation for this collection of Liberty Double Eagles. If you don’t recall the posting, please refer back to March 25, 2021. It may be worth a reread.
Today, I want to touch a little on the S.S. Brother Jonathan Treasure. There is always a mystic feel with treasure coins. The discovery of the S.S. Brother Jonathan was just that, and maybe more. In a recent Stacks Bowers Auction, the story was told as: On Sunday, July 30, 1865, the S.S. Brother Jonathan ran into an uncharted rock during a gale and sank off the coast near Crescent City, California, taking with it 219 people and a substantial golden treasure. In the 1990s, Deep Sea Research, Inc. located the wreck and in a series of exploration dives salvaged 1,207 coins, most of which were 1865-S double eagles. Prior to the discovery, Mint State survivors of this issue were extremely rare. More than 600 of the coins from the S.S. Brother Jonathan treasure are Uncirculated, however, realigning the 1865-S as one of the more available Type I Liberty Head double eagles in Mint State. Since these coins were fist sold at auction in 1999, they have been popular with high grade gold type collectors and double eagle enthusiasts, as well as with collectors of shipwreck treasure.
Heritage provides a little more colorful story that was wrote for an earlier Brother Jonathan coin in a different auction: "When the Brother Jonathan smashed against a large rock and sank on July 30, 1865, off the coast of Crescent City, California, it was not only gold coins that were lost. That may be all that we remember today, but 219 people also slipped beneath the waves. General George Wright, who was to assume his new post at Fort Vancouver; Anson Henry, governor of the Washington Territory; and eight prostitutes (or 'soiled doves' in the contemporary vernacular) were among the more colorful passengers who lost their lives that fateful day. Additionally, $300,000-$500,000 in cargo went down, 346 barrels of whiskey, $200,000 in payroll for U.S. troops at Fort Vancouver, and more than $100,000 in jewelry and cash in the purser's safe. Many of the gold bars carried on the steamship were recovered between 1916 and the early 1930s. But only in the past few years have high-grade double eagles been recovered and entered the numismatic marketplace." I wonder if any of the aged whiskey was recovered?
The S.S. Brother Jonathan was not the only ship carrying gold coins sank in 1865. Both the S.S. Brother Jonathan and the S.S. Republic sank during the crucial year 1865, the last of the Civil War and the next-to-last for the Type One double eagles, those bearing no motto IN GOD WE TRUST above the eagle on the reverse. (HA) A challenge by Stacks Bower to ponder: Try to obtain one double eagle from each of the famous treasure ship discoveries -- the S.S. Brother Jonathan, S.S. Central America, and S.S. Republic, examples of which are actually being offered in this sale! You can read a sketch of each treasure ship in the front pages of A Guide Book of United States Coins, the famous Red Book.
I am not sure if the D.L. Hansen Collection have coins from these three shipwrecks. If someday this collection is cataloged, that would be great to know.
1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65: Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan
With the shipwreck coins, Coin Facts place the rarity and survival estimate at 35 for MS65(GEM) and above. Doug Winter Summary: The 1865-S is another date whose rarity profile was greatly changed by the discovery of shipwrecks; in this case both the S.S. Brother Jonathan and the S.S. Republic which was found around a decade later. It was formerly a rare coin in higher grades but now it is among the most common Type One issues. Prior to the discovery of the Brother Johnathan, it was very hard to locate an 1865-S with good eye appeal. The typical piece was weakly struck on the obverse, densely abraded, and dull. With the addition of hundreds of nice shipwreck coins to the market, there are now many 1865-S double eagles with above-average eye appeal. Over 550 double eagles dated 1865-S were found in the S.S. Brother Jonathan and many were marketed at an auction held by Bowers and Merena in May of 1999. Another major hoard, containing over 200 coins, was found in the S.S. Republic treasure. Two of the shipwreck coins were originally graded MS66 by PCGS in 1999. The finer of these, which is cited above, is likely the single best 1865-S double eagle in existence. In more than two years, grade inflation has not change the population report with only two MS66 specimens.
Mr. Winter: As of the beginning of 2015, PCGS had graded a total of 467 in Uncirculated including 129 in MS64, 22 in MS65, and two in MS66. NGC had graded of 370 in Uncirculated including 82 in MS64, 58 in MS65, and eight in MS66. These figures are inflated by resubmissions. CAC has approved 50 Uncirculated examples: one in MS60, two in MS61, six in MS62, 14 in MS63, 25 in MS64, and two in MS65. Mr. Hansen had a couple MS64 PCGS specimens. They could be found in the Hansen #1 and #2 sets. Mr. Hansen original coin was a MS63, Cert ##38081755. The coin was replaced with MS64, CAC, Cert #81722155 with the purchase of the AWA Collection. This coin remained in the Hansen #1 collection until the recent GEM purchase. Mr. Hansen added a second MS64 Specimen late last year. The MS64 CAC, Cert # 05506165 was purchased in the Legend Auctions sale of The BigMo Civil War Collection Part II. The coin was an Ex S.S. Brother Jonathan, number 465. The BigMo coin was paced in the #2 set and never appeared as Hansen’s top 1865-S Liberty Double Eagle.
The new MS65 Hansen specimen was purchased in Stacks Bowers June 2021, U.S. Coins Part 2 sale. The coin is still in the original Brother Johnathan PCGS holder and described as: Beautiful Gem Mint State 1865-S Double Eagle. The coin is documented as appearing in auction one other time after the original 1999 sale. The coin appeared in the Heritage 10/2006 sale of The Hamburg-Sonoma Collection. The sale information given: In addition to the allure of the sunken-treasure pedigree, the coins recovered from the Brother Jonathan include many pieces in otherwise unattainable condition. To take this issue as just one example, PCGS has certified 20 pieces in 65, with 2 finer (8/06). Both of the finer pieces, which were both graded MS66, were offered in the May 1999 Bowers and Merena sale of coins from the shipwreck, as were 14 of the Gems. Even before the possibility of resubmission is raised, the rarity of Gem examples is clear. I cannot confirm the coin appeared as one of the PCGS certified 20 MS65 pieces in Oct 1999. The probability is good that it was one of them. Heritage described the coin as: The surfaces of this piece are mostly peach-gold with frosty luster. The center of the reverse takes on an orange hue with thin streaks of red that run to 3 o'clock. Some softness of strike is noted on the hair above the ear and on the right (facing) ribbon near the eagle, and solitary isolated abrasions are noted on Liberty's face and in the field to the left of the nose, but the surfaces are free of other significant defects. A magnificent and tangible piece of American history.
As previously stated, the coin was offered a few days ago in Stacks Bowers June 2021, U.S. Coins Part 2 sale. The recent provenance was not given. The coin was described as: A splendid example with blended rose-gold and deeper reddish-apricot patina blanketing both sides. The surfaces are as smooth as would be expected for the assigned grade and possess a softly ofrosted texture. A sharply executed strike adds to the appeal of this lovely and conditionally rare Gem. Fully Gem with strong visual appeal, the present example is among the finest certified available today. Mr. Hansen was able to obtain the coin with a $31,200 bid.
I will close by adding the Civil War connection. We have witness Mr. Hansen improving his 110-piece set significantly in the past year. There were only three coins outside the PCGS top ten on the population report. The Hansen 1865-S $20 MS64 specimen was the worst, POP 130/24. With this purchase the 1865-S $20 MS65 top coin is now POP 21/2. The other two prime candidates for upgrade, 1861-D $5 AU58, POP 5/13 and 1861 10C MS65, POP 28/11.
The 1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65: Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan makes a great addition to this amazing collection. As once describe by a poster: No doubt the most incredible set I've ever seen. Absolutely stunning! Thank you for letting me see it.
Provenance: S.S. Brother Jonathan Treasure Hoard (possible Bowers and Merena 5/1999); The Hamburg-Sonoma Collection / Dallas Signature Coin Auction (Heritage 10/2006), lot 3224, realized $14,950; U.S. Coins Part 2 Auction (Stacks Bowers 6/2021), lot 2574, realized $31,200, D.L. Hansen Collection.
1865-S Liberty Double Eagle MS65
POP 21/2
Certification #03449157, PCGS #8944
PCGS Price Guide: $35,000 / Realized $31,200
Ex: S.S. Brother Jonathan
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
Liberty Head Half Eagle Upgrade
This is an update for a nice half eagle upgrade from the legendary Carson City Mint. The PCGS registry requires only 19 coins. PCGS described this little set as: The Carson City mint holds a special place in the hearts and minds of U.S. numismatists, conjuring up (largely accurate) images of a small "wild west" town where gold and silver were king. In operation from 1870 through 1893, mintages were generally quite modest with only the later (1890 and after) issues being struck in decent quantity. The opening year of 1870 is clearly the key to this fairly short set with fewer than 100 pieces extant, nearly all of which are well-circulated.
Tom Bender’s registry set ranks in the top position in the All-Time Finest catalog. The Bender set beats out the Harry W. Bass set by 2.5 points. The D.L. Hansen set rounds out the top three and is more that 4 point below the Bender set.
D.L. Hansen Top Ten
The above screenshot shows the top ten coins in the 19 piece Hansen set. As you can see, the set has three PCGS sole finest, POP 1/0 specimens. There are three others tied for PCGS finest and then three more that have only one coin certified finer. The new upgrade replaces an AU58 POP 8/4. The duplicate is a gorgeous 1874-CC, AU58 Cert #25631144, with current PCGS value of $40,000. Coins like this are forming an amazing duplicate set in the Collection.
Tom Bender Top Ten
In comparing the Bender and Hansen Sets, the top ten coins are very close. Actually, you will need to go down to the 10th coin to see a better Bender coin. The last nine coins are the cause of the separation. In addition, the Hansen 1870-CC places a real drag on the rating. The VF25 Cert #21625523 Specimen is a POP 9/47. Mr. Hansen can upgrade three coins and go from third to the all-time top. Could be a matter of time?
1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagle MS63
Expert Doug Winter wrote: In overall rarity, the 1874-CC is possibly the most common of the very rare Carson City Mint issues in the 1870-1878 period. (At least it had more auction appearances in my 337 catalogue survey and I have personally seen more of this date than of any of the others.) Most known specimens of the 1874-CC are well circulated and VF examples are typical. A few AU coins are known but only one 1874-CC catalogued as uncirculated has ever been offered at public auction. That coin was in the Robison Sale (Stack's 2/79) and it brought $19,000.
Coin Facts estimates 200 in all grades, with only three in mint condition, with none greater than Choice MS63+. PCGS has three certified as mint state: 1-MS62, 1-MS63, and 1-MS63+. NGC POP report has one minted graded, MS61. This combine POP report totals four with a possibility of one resubmittal. It appears Coin Facts estimates are pretty much in alignment with the POP reports. In reviewing auction history, this small grouping has appeared only five times since 1991. The Hansen specimen was not been offered in any of the previous actions, and with a hint provided by David Lawrence Rare Coins, there may be a good reason why. Of the four possible Mint State Specimens, I could positively account for just three. As a side note, the Harry Bass Specimen was an AU58.
The short roster of mint state 1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagles:
1. Polis / Vanderbilt Specimen, MS63+PCGS, George N. Polis, M.D. Collection (Bowers & Merena 6/1991) Lot 1512; A.J. Vanderbilt Collection (Stack's/Bowers 3/2018 as MS62 PCGS, Cert # 5195501 -OGH), Lot 10343, Realized $90,000 (Auction Record); note: coin upgraded to MS63+ PCGS with PCGS value of $165,000.
2. Hansen Registry Set Specimen, MS63 PCGS, Cert #40907608, Fresh from an European Bank; Private Transaction (David Lawrence Rare Coins 6/2021), D.L. Hansen Collection.
3. Bender Registry Set Specimen, MS62 PCGS Cert #24078981, Robison Collection (Stack's 2/1979), Lot 498; Reed Hawn Collection (Stack’s 10/1993) Lot 995; Dr. Larry Cutler Collection (Doug Winter and Lee Minshull, 11/1996); Nevada Collection; Battle Born Collection (Stack’s/Bowers 8/2012) Lot 11005, Realized $43,125; Tom Bender Registry Set.
4. NGC MS-61 Specimen, Listed on the NGC Census appears to be a relative (post-2003) newcomer to the Condition Census for this issue (Stacks Bowers 2018). Note: the coin has never appeared in auction.
The new Hansen coin was offered by David Lawrence Rare Coins. It was described as: Fresh from a European bank, this very scarce and popular CC mint issue. From an original mintage of just 21,198 coins struck, this is one of only a handful of uncirculated survivors. Only a single MS63+ example has been graded finer than this amazing specimen. A choice piece in all regards, satiny surfaces are devoid of any distracting contact marks and are warmly toned with pretty rose highlights on the obverse. A significant and thrilling opportunity for the advanced Liberty Head half eagle and Carson City Mint enthusiasts. With a MS62 example that is far inferior to this piece coming in at $90k in 2018, this coin is sure to find a new home!
The internet listing had an ask price of $181,130. DLRC gave the coin their Eye Appeal Rating of 5 stars. I would tend to agree, because the coin has a great look. This coin makes a great upgrade in the Hansen Carson City gold collection. Let’s watch and see if the three over the top coins are someday in the making.
Provenance: See #2 on the roster.
1874-CC Carson City Liberty Half Eagle MS63
PCGS POP 1/1
Certification #40907608, PCGS #8334
PCGS Price Guide Value: $150,000 / Private Transaction
Ex: European Bank Discovery
My 20th Century Gold Major Design Type Set ---started : 11/17/1997 ---- completed : 1/21/2004
I really like that coin.