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Won BG-1207 1872 $1 Round Calif Fractional Gold PCGS MS-63 at B&M Auction **ADDED SHORT FACTS A
oreville
Posts: 12,432 ✭✭✭✭✭
My internet bid did fight some floor bidding despite the weather in Baltimore so I got no "bargain" on this one at $5175 including the juice. But I am pleased nevertheless!
A Collectors Universe poster since 1997!
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Can you "school" me a bit on these?
It is described as:
An excellent coin for the grade that shows rich prooflike fields and normal color. The reverse is similar and does show a bit of haze and a few lines, but this one has the appearance of a higher grade. Sharply struck throughout and very pleasing for the grade.
These "coins" were really made by "jewelers" since US coins had begun to circulate in California. There was still a leftover sense of independence and the small nuggets of gold being found had to go somewhere.
I left my BG book in the office so I can't quote the details from here re: the maker of the coin, etc.
I am snowbound here in a blinding snowstorm at the moment.
nice coin !!!!
Oh yes, the maker is:
Christopher (Christoph) Ferdinand Mohrig.
NOTE: This is NOT the coin I won. This was the coin I lost out at the Jay Roe sale.
OK a short version on these California Fractional Gold pieces:
They were mostly hammer struck.
They ranged between 14K and 22K in fineness.
They were also called "California pocket pieces," "tokens," "bangles," "charms," or "trinkets."
They were mostly minted between 1852 and 1882. The minters did not consider them coins but tokens instead.
It is doubtful they circulated other than tokens and souvenirs except possibly between 1852-1854. The San Francisco Mint opened in 1854.
They were struck by jewelers (not the retail kind you see today).
They were mostly struck in San Francisco, CA.
They were not considered illegal until 1864 when the US passed the Private Coinage Act of 1864. But the Civil War was still going on which delayed enforcement.
There was another US attempt in 1870-1872 to outlaw these Fractionals. That stopped some jewelers and prompted another to add the word "token" in 1872.
In early 1883 the Feds stepped in again and stopped further distribution of these California pocket pieces.
Where did the name California pocket pieces come from? None other than the US Mint records!
Hope this helps.
Myriads
did you ever take new pictures of the coin?
You show a second coin down below that cost about 6000.
The coin you show cost about 5000.
Such a difference in pictures. How does it look in hand?
I am quite intimidated by collectors of these coins/tokens.
Good post. I like how you are open with details such as price.
I did not take another picture since the one taken by B&M is quite representative of the Cal piece. Besides the piece is small enough to make picture taking quite difficult. The Jay Roe while not as well struck in some areas as my piece deserves at least the same PCGS MS-63 grade but does not go beyond. The luster on the Jay Roe is less than on the piece I bought and also does not have the same degree of cameo finish on the devices. Mine is also more prooflike which then highlights every single flaw of the Cal piece.
Why are you so intimidated by collectors of California gold pieces? We don't display our forehead horns except on Halloween!
oreville - very nice acquisition
Top 10 Cal Fractional Type Set
successful BST with Ankurj, BigAl, Bullsitter, CommemKing, DCW(7), DesertMoon, Downtown1974, Elmerfusterpuck, Joelewis, Mach1ne, Minuteman810430, Modcrewman, Nankraut, Nederveit2, Philographer(5), Proofcollection, Realgator, Silverpop, SurfinxHI, TomB and Yorkshireman(3)
Credits : The Coin Site via CalGold Online
Period One gold pieces are found both dated and undated, and some bear the initials or abbreviated names of their manufacturers, most of whom were Frenchmen. Known makers of these pieces include M. Deriberpe and Antoine Louis Nouizillet, both San Francisco jewelers. Partnerships which produced fractional gold coins include those of Deriberpe and Nouizillet (marked D.N.), Pierre Frontier and Eugene Deviercy (F.D.) and Nouizillet and F. Routhier (N.R.).
The manufacture of gold dollars, halves and quarters ceased in 1856, probably as federal silver coins from the new San Francisco Mint took their place. For reasons now uncertain, their production resumed in 1859, these being the first of the Period Two (1859-82) coins. It’s believed that such later issues were produced mostly for sale as charms and souvenirs of the Gold Rush and of San Francisco. By now somewhat civilized, the city of gold had become popular with tourists from the East and from Europe. Period Two coins were often debased, and some were merely gold-plated over silver.
Cruder in their engraving and manufacture, and far more exotic in their designs, Period Two gold pieces were collectable from their inception. They are thus more likely than the earlier coins to be found in unworn condition. A fad which developed in the 1860s and ‘70s, however, saw many of these tokens pierced and/or mounted for use as jewelry. Since that was evidently their original purpose, the harm in this practice was not perceived until generations later. The reuse of old dies and the muling of ones not originally used together was common during this period, as the need for protecting against counterfeits no longer existed.
Some of the names familiar from the Period One coinage recur with these later issues. Frontier & Deviercy were associated with [Alexandre] Dubois & Co before becoming Frontier & Co. in 1864. Thereafter, the partnership went through various configurations, but the use of common die punches on Period Two coins suggests that they may have struck souvenir pieces as late as 1873. Antoine Nouizillet sold his business to Robert B. Gray & Co. around 1859-60, and the latter produced fractional coins with Nouizillet’s existing dies, as well as his own (marked G). Gray sold his interests to the California Jewelry Co. in 1871. Some of its coins bear letter L, a reference to its Levison Bros. watch division. New entries in the field of gold coin manufacturing included the partnerships of Reuben N. Hershfield and Noah Mitchell of Leavenworth, Kansas (dies marked H), Ernest Henrici and Herman J. Brand, and the Joseph Bros. (Lionel and Josephus). Undocumented and untraceable gold pieces known as mavericks also date from this period. Unlike the earlier gold pieces, those of Period Two were made both inside and outside California.
Though there’s no evidence of Period Two gold pieces being mistaken for a legal tender, these coins caught the eye of James J. Brooks, the somewhat overzealous chief of the U. S. Secret Service. He requested that San Francisco Agent Henry Finnegass look into the matter. When Finnegass was able to purchase one each of the quarter and half dollar pieces at face value from a jeweler, he used this as evidence of noncompliance with the Law of June 8, 1864 prohibiting private coinage. Despite pleas from the jewelry manufacturers that these tokens were used only as charms, he launched a crusade of seizure and destruction whenever he could find such pieces for sale. This had the effect of temporarily ending their manufacture and distribution, as well as making some varieties quite rare.
Still popular and in demand, fractional gold coins eventually resurfaced, though the practice of coining them was clandestine. The newly-made pieces bore earlier dates (including some not previously used!) and were usually without markings that could tie them to a particular jeweler
Top 10 Cal Fractional Type Set
successful BST with Ankurj, BigAl, Bullsitter, CommemKing, DCW(7), DesertMoon, Downtown1974, Elmerfusterpuck, Joelewis, Mach1ne, Minuteman810430, Modcrewman, Nankraut, Nederveit2, Philographer(5), Proofcollection, Realgator, Silverpop, SurfinxHI, TomB and Yorkshireman(3)
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
I do not own any period 3. personal preference. All period 3 are circa 1906 to present.
period 3 - "the Kroll hoard" - 1301 through 1307
unknown makers (at least 5 ) - 1309 - 1330
authenticity has been questioned on many examples - several are modern day reproductions from the 70's.
some are 'forgeries' of period 1
some concensus that period 3 pieces were "often fraudulent sales to coin collectors" - californoa pioneer fractional gold - breen & gillio - 2nd edition
NGC has graded 1301 (2) , 1302(1), 1304(1), 1305(1) 1306(1), and 1307 (4)
from the same article referenced earlier (The coin site via Cal Gold Online) :
Only one maker of Period Three issues has been positively identified: Herman Kroll of New York City. Relatively few varieties exist which can be attributed to this period, and it’s believed that the last such coins were made early in the 20th Century. Known as Period Three coins, they too are quite collectable.
When the fad for fractional gold pieces as jewelry items faded after the 1880s, Henry Kroll sold his remaining stock to collector A. C. Nygren, whose estate was auctioned by Philadelphia dealer Henry Chapman in 1924. Some of Kroll’s dies resurfaced decades later, and a new generation of minters put them to work once again. This only confused the attribution of vintage pieces all the more, though the later restrikes made for collectors are known to be of finer gold than the original edition, which was intended purely for the jewelry trade. Also muddying the waters somewhat are outright fabrications produced as souvenirs of the Old West and the pioneer days. Still sold today, these are easily detectable by anyone who can distinguish between gold and brass.
Top 10 Cal Fractional Type Set
successful BST with Ankurj, BigAl, Bullsitter, CommemKing, DCW(7), DesertMoon, Downtown1974, Elmerfusterpuck, Joelewis, Mach1ne, Minuteman810430, Modcrewman, Nankraut, Nederveit2, Philographer(5), Proofcollection, Realgator, Silverpop, SurfinxHI, TomB and Yorkshireman(3)