Help with CSA half dollars please
DMWJR
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In the upcoming ANR auction, there is an 1861 CSA Half Dollar Restrike that is from the 1982 NYPL auction (there were two for sale there). These two coins are noted in Breen and in the auction description as being Breen 8001 which means that the alignment of the coin dies was in normal "coin alignment." This is like a standard coin which is top to bottom in that you flip it from top to bottom and the face is right side up. This is the opposite of "medal alignment" which would require you to turn the coin side to side to keep the face right side up.
This auction description states that there are only two known 8001's, and this is one of them. However, I have a CSA Half Restrike, and it also has the coin alignment. ANR doesn't show the coin in the holder, so you really can't tell from the pictures how this particular coin is aligned. I researched the Heritage site, and there are two more CSA Restrikes (other than mine and the one currently in auction) that also have the coin alignment. Further, Heritage is auctioning yet another fifth coin at FUN that also has the Coin alignment. There are no auctions which clearly show "medal alignment."
Can anyone clear this up for me????
ANR auction description, Lot 1480:
Only two known CSA restrike half dollars are known to be struck in coin alignment (heads to tails) rather than medal alignment, both of which were in the New York Public Library collection when that cabinet, formed mostly in the 19th century, entered the marketplace in 1982. Both of these pieces, singled out by Walter Breen as B-8001, show portions of the undertype, suggesting that when these prototype restrikes (as Breen termed them) were struck, Scott had not yet fully determined the process that would show the CSA die to greatest benefit-namely smoothing down the entire reverse before striking them. This piece was struck atop an 1861-O half dollar that was coined using the precise obverse die that struck all four original Confederate half dollars, showing a die crack from obverse rim to Liberty's nose inside star 7. The die crack is still visible despite the flattening of the obverse by the restriking process. Based upon the fact that only two examples are known with coin alignment like this coin, both of which feature large amounts of remaining undertype, it would appear that Scott struck off these two, was not satisfied with the production and removed the die from the screw press he was using, and later remounted the CSA reverse die after having the reverses of the remaining 500 1861 half dollars ground down completely. No further examples have turned up since 1982 to our knowledge. Offered in the weeks after one of the four original Confederate half dollars realized an incredible sum in excess of a half million dollars, the sale of this historic restrike presents a remarkable opportunity for collectors interested in the history of this dramatic 19th century production.
The NGC holder attributes this piece as "B-8002," though Breen actually mentions this precise coin and describes its unusual alignment in the description of 8001.
From Bowers and Ruddy Galleries's sale of the New York Public Library Collection, October 1982, Lot 2891.
Doug
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Yes, the entire history of the CSA half is a fascinating one. However, for this thread, I really am more interested in knowing whether or not "coin alignment" is rare for the CSA halves.