$20 - 1870 Philadelphia : strange position for the "1" of the date.
Herakles
Posts: 6 ✭
Hello,
I have seen in a coming Auction sale a $20 1870 gold coin with a strange date. The "1" of 1870 is too close to the neck of Liberty Head...
So I assume that is not a faulty issue but a gold copy maybe from Lebanon ?
- Weight : 33,38g & Diameter : 34mm.
Thank you in advance for your help.
0
Comments
Welcome to the forum.
I realize that you said 1870, not 1870-S, but is it possible that the coin’s a miscatalogued S-mint example?
The details do look quite weak considering the apparent state of preservation.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Thank you. Whatever the minting place the "1" never hits the neck doesn't it ?
You’re most welcome,
I had done a brief search of auction sales prior to my previous reply. And I did find an 1870-S with the 1 in the date touching Liberty’s neck. See here:
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Ya got a pic of the reverse by chance? 🙂
Back then each obverse working die was dated by a four-digit gang punch. Whether this was done by a guy swinging a mallet or some sort of mechanical device remains subject to discussion.
Either way, the date position varied from die to die. This is indeed further left than normal, but nothing that would be collectible at a premium.
This is my 1870-S $20 in PCGS/CAC MS-62. The 1 in the date is further away from Liberty’s neck.
Right, there were several obverse dies used for the 1870 $20 in Philadelphia and San Francisco, and the date and mint mark positions varied.
https://pcgs.com/coinfacts/coin/1870-s-20/8959
Coinfacts shows 3 examples of the 1870-s. 2 out of the 3 show the top (touching) position of the "1."
Those 2 examples also show a more refined "S" mint mark that is slightly to the right of the other example.
But the OP's example might be jammed in there a bit tighter all around.
I might be wrong but I think that @Herakles was more concerned with whether the coin is genuine than how uncommon the placement of the 1 in the date is. And because he hadn’t seen any examples with the 1 touching Liberty, it made him think that the subject coin was probably counterfeit.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Perhaps. I was just explaining to him why the date position is nor a cause for concern as to authenticity.
I understood and appreciated that - thank you.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Hello,
Thank you very much for these explanations.
It still makes it interesting to see, thank for sharing 🙏
You are quite welcome. Glad to help.