1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS65 PCGS. CAC....

Description

Exceptional MS65 Wire Rim 1907 High Relief

1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS65 PCGS. CAC. At the beginning of the 20th century President Theodore Roosevelt's grand idea for a new era of U.S. coins was abetted by his extraordinary energy, his willingness to push ahead no matter the obstacles, and his insistence that the work be done by one of the finest artists of the times, Augustus Saint-Gaudens.
Roosevelt was the son of a patrician family, a Spanish-American War Rough Rider, and twenty-sixth President of the United States. Saint-Gaudens was born to a shoemaker in Ireland, trained as a stone cameo cutter in New York, and by the late 1800s was established as the foremost American sculptor of his era. Roosevelt contacted Saint-Gaudens in 1905 to ask for the sculptor's help in his "pet crime," the redesign of America's coinage. There was no compelling reason for the President's involvement in this endeavor other than his own progressive vision for America, and that he felt the current coins were "artistically of atrocious hideousness," in his oft-quoted words.
The efforts to produce the new high-relief double eagle were compromised by the artist's declining health and by resistance from the Mint's Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber, who maintained from the start the impracticality of a high relief design for circulating coins. Nonetheless, this grand struggle between art, politics, and bureaucratic practicality produced a coin that is often called the epitome of U.S. coin design. High Relief coins took five strikes to bring up the detail, and the wire rim was caused by metal flowing between the dies and the collar from the multiple strikes. Though rejected by banks as unstackable, the coins became an instant collectible at the time of issue and today are aggressively sought after in all grades. Congress recently approved measures to recreate this classic coin in gold and palladium. But, to have a copy there must be an original, and this beautiful and historic Gem coin is manifestly that.
Attractive yellow-gold color overlays each side of this piece, which shows gleaming, satiny luster throughout. Essentially free of any signs of contact on each side. Fully struck, even on the highest points, with even the toes of Liberty completely struck. An outstanding example of this immensely popular issue, often regarded as this nation's most beautiful coin.
From the Stephen Stokely Collection, Part Five.(Registry values: N7079)

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 26F2, PCGS# 9135, GSID# 10131)

Metal: 90% Gold, 10% Copper
Weight: 33.44 grams
AGW: 1.06oz
Mintage: 12,367

Note for clients in the European Union: This lot is considered by the European Union to be “investment gold”. We believe that it meets the criteria established in Article 344(1), point (2) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC and thus should be exempt from import VAT regardless of the selling price. Any questions or concerns about VAT should be addressed to your accountant or local tax authority.

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