1807 $2 1/2 MS63 NGC....

Description

High-End 1807 Quarter Eagle, BD-1, MS63

1807 $2 1/2 MS63 NGC. Breen-6124, BD-1, R.3. The quarter eagle was an unpopular denomination in the early 19th century. Walter Breen characterizes the denomination as "seldom called for, few made, little welcome." The denomination was kept alive by a few, scattered orders from bullion depositors who specifically requested these coins to meet some particular need. The 1807 Capped Bust Right quarter eagle boasts a tiny mintage of only 6,812 pieces, still the largest mintage of the design type by a wide margin. Experts estimate perhaps 250-350 specimens survive today in all grades.
A single pair of dies was sufficient to accomplish the entire mintage for this year. As might be expected from the mintage, the 1807 quarter eagle is the most available date in the series, and is very popular as a type coin. In Collecting & Investing Strategies for United States Gold Coins, Jeff Ambio gives the 1807 his highest recommendation for inclusion in a complete type set. This date has been popular since the earliest days of the hobby, and appeared in many auction catalogs from the 19th century. Curiously, auction descriptions are almost always terse, and impart little information about these coins. A typical early description is found in the McCoy Collection (Woodward, 5/1864), lot 1969. Woodward's description reads simply, "1807 Very fine, uncirculated, scarce." Information about die varieties, design subtypes, etc. was of little interest to collectors of the time.
The present coin is one of the finest existing specimens of this popular date. The strike is above average, but shows some of the central weakness nearly always found on this issue. The central obverse shows a few shallow roller marks. The attractive fields are noticeably reflective. NGC and PCGS combined have certified only eight coins at the MS63 level, with two finer (12/08).(Registry values: P5)

Coin Index Numbers: (PCGS# 7656, GSID# 8216)

Metal: 91.67% Gold, 8.33% Copper
Weight: 4.37 grams
AGW: 0.1288oz
Mintage: 6,812

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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