1828/7 $5 BD-2, High R.8, MS63 NGC....

Description

1828/7 Capped Head Left Half Eagle, MS63
Famous Guide Book Overdate, BD-2
Two Known (Formerly Unique)

1828/7 $5 BD-2, High R.8, MS63 NGC. HBJ-262. This attractive Select specimen displays pleasing antique-gold surfaces that show highlights of copper patina around the devices. The design elements are sharply detailed, aside from the slightest touch of flatness on a few star centers. Liberty's hair and cap, and the eagle and shield on the reverse exhibit razor-sharp definition throughout. Bright, prooflike reflectivity is evident in many areas. A few scattered, minor contact marks are present, but they do little to detract from the exceptional visual appeal. We expect intense competition from series specialists when this unique early half eagle crosses the auction block.
Variety Equivalents: None.
Obverse Die: This overdated obverse die is found on 1828/7 BD-1 and BD-2.
Reverse Die: This is the first of four die marriages: 1828 BD-2, 1828 BD-3, 1828 BD-4, and 1829 BD-1.
Bass-Dannreuther Die State a/a: Both dies are perfect with no indication of clash marks, die cracks, or lapping.
NGC Census Data (10/25): NGC records just two submissions of 1828/7 half eagles graded MS63 and MS64.
Significant Examples: The two known 1828/7 BD-2 half eagles accompany four known 1828/7 BD-1 half eagles, all recorded in the following roster.
Breen (1966): While Breen was unaware of this variety that Andrew Pollock discovered in 1996, he wrote about his estimate of seven or eight examples of the 1828/7 half eagles: "Newcomer's inventory estimated that eight overdates and four perfect date coins were known. From all that I have been able to find out, there are seven perfect date coins known, and I have had much difficulty in learning the number of overdates."
Bass-Dannreuther (2006): "The discovery of this variety is credited to Andrew W. Pollock III, an unsung hero of the early gold issues, who first noticed this variety, miscataloged on numerous occasions as the previous overdate variety-the common one, BD-1!"
Heritage Commentary: The 1819 BD-3 variety (discovered by Mark Borckardt in 2014) and the 1825/4/1 BD-3 variety (discovered by David Kenny in 2013) are each represented by a single known example, while a second example of the 1828/7 BD-2 variety (identified by Andrew Pollock, circa 1996) was recently uncovered. Heritage Auctions is delighted to present the 1828/7 BD-2 discovery coin in this important offering from the Harvey B. Jacobson Collection.

The Capped Head Left half eagles, struck from 1813 to 1834, are universally celebrated for the absolute rarity of nearly all the dates of the series. Issues like 1815 (10 examples known) and 1822 (three specimens identified) have been acknowledged rarities since the earliest days of the hobby. In addition, the series is replete with distinctive die varieties that were easily recognized and avidly collected by early numismatists. Some of these varieties are extremely rare, like the famous 1825/4 BD-2 half eagle (two examples known), which was recognized by catalogers as early as 1864. Over the years, some of the foremost American numismatists, like John Colvin Randall, Edgar Adams, Waldo Newcomer, Walter Breen, Harry Bass, and John Dannreuther, among others, have devoted much time and energy to the study of these early die varieties. The study continues today, and the three rarest die varieties of the Capped Head Left series are all recent discoveries during the last 30 years.

According to Mint records, 28,029 half eagles were struck in 1828, and four die varieties are known for the date. Two varieties (BD-3 and BD-4) were struck from different obverse dies with perfect dates and the other two (BD-1 and BD-2) were produced using the same previously unused, overdated obverse die from 1827. All four varieties are very rare. The BD-2 is easily recognized by the low position of star 13, close to the hair, and the small distance between F in OF and the eagle's wing on the reverse. John Dannreuther estimates the BD-2 accounted for 2,000-4,000 pieces of the reported mintage. The obverse die was also used to produce the 1828/7 BD-1 overdate, and the reverse was later used to strike the BD-3 and BD-4 varieties of this date, and the BD-1 variety of 1829.
Doug Winter Commentary: Chronologically, 1828 is the year in which the Wannabes get shunted to the back of the room and the real Phat Head Boyz duke it out in the front. You've got two issues to contend with and both are HUGE rarities. There are only 16 or so 1828 half eagles of which the Jacobson 1828/7, is one of just six overdates believed to exist. As if that weren't enough, the BD-2 die variety is semi-unique.
Provenance: Recorded in the following roster.

A Roster of known 1828/7 half eagles (BD-1 and BD-2) provided by Ron Guth of the Numismatic Detective Agency with additional contributions from Mark Borckardt.
1. BD-2. MS64+ PCGS. Probably from Stack's (12/1939), lot 100; James A. Stack, Sr. Estate; Stack's Bowers (sale pending for 2025-2026). The dark spot right of star 6 on this example appears to match the plate from the 1939 Stack's catalog.
2. BD-1. MS64 PCGS. Waldo C. Newcomer Collection; Col. E.H.R. Green Collection; King Farouk of Egypt Collection; King Farouk / The Palace Collections of Egypt (Sotheby's, 2/1954), lot 244; Dr. Clifford E. Smith and Son Collection (Stack's, 5/1955), lot 1690; 1976 ANA (Stack's, 8/1976), lot 2944, $25,000; R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr. Collection; Paramount Fixed Price List; Auction '82 (Paramount, 8/1982), lot 1932, $42,500; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Foundation Collection (HBCC# 3151); Heritage (8/2023), lot 9058, $528,000. This is the plate coin in the Bass-Dannreuther reference for the BD-1 (1828/7 Reverse of 1826) variety and is also incorrectly illustrated for BD-2.
3. BD-1. MS64 NGC. CAC. Byron Reed Collection; Omaha City Library/Durham Western Heritage Museum (donated 1891); Durham Western Heritage Museum (Spink America, 10/1996), lot 117, $159,500; Dr. Juan XII Suros Collection (Superior, 2/1999), lot 247, $184,000; Harvey Jacobson, Jr. Collection (Heritage, 1/2012), lot 4680, $632,500.
4. BD-1. MS63 PCGS. George F. Seavey Collection (William H. Strobridge 6/1873); Lorin G. Parmelee, who purchased the Seavey Collection intact before the auction took place (6/1873); Lorin G. Parmelee Collection (New York Coin & Stamp Co., 6/1890), lot 978, $49; Harlan P. Smith Collection (S.H. & H. Chapman, 5/1906), lot 216 (mis-numbered as lot 218 on the plate), $210; John M. Clapp Collection; John H. Clapp Collection, sold intact via Stack's in 1942; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection (Bowers and Ruddy, 10/1982), lot 385, $44,000; Stanley Kesselman; D. Brent Pogue Collection, Part IV (Stack's Bowers & Sotheby's, 5/2016), lot 4034, $282,000; D.L. Hansen Collection.

A named copy of the Parmelee catalog on the Newman Numismatic Portal has the non-du-plume "Jac" as the buyer of that lot and other lots with the same buyer are plate matched to the 1906 H.P. Smith catalog.
5. BD-2. MS63 NGC. Dupont Collection (privately); Farish Baldenhofer Collection (Stack's, 11/1955), lot 1245; Samuel W. Wolfson Collection (Stack's, 10/1962), lot 371; John Murrell; Auction '80 (Paramount, 8/1980), lot 927; Auction '88 (David Akers, 7/1988), lot 903; Brooks Collection (Bowers and Merena, 6/1989), lot 377; Michael Keston, purchased from Superior in August of 1989; Keston Collection (Superior, 1/1996), lot 118; Dr. Richard Ariagno Collection (Ira & Larry Goldberg, 5/1999), lot 719; Hutchinson Collection/Central States Signature (Heritage, 4/2017), lot 4257. The present specimen.
6. BD-1. AU58 Uncertified (grade per Jeff Garrett). Beebee, Ludlow & Co., Bullion and Exchange Brokers; sold to Matthew Stickney for $5.35 on October 1, 1847 (per Saul Teichman); Matthew A. Stickney Collection (Henry Chapman, 6/1907), lot 670, $360; Virgil Brand Collection (inventory #39043); 311th Sale (J.C. Morgenthau, 10/1933), lot 222; Col. E.H.R. Green; Louis Eliasberg Collection, sold as a duplicate under the pseudonym "H.R. Lee" (Stack's, 10/1947), lot 1247; Clifford T. Weihman; Josiah K. Lilly Collection, donated intact in 1968 by Lilly's estate to the National Numismatic Collection in exchange for a $5.5 million tax credit; National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution (NU 68.159.01 96). This is the plate coin in David W. Akers' reference work on U.S. half eagles.

Additional Auction Appearances of 1828/7 Half Eagles:
A. Metropolitan New York Convention (Stack's, 5/1958), lot 1235; B. J.F. Bell Collection (Stack's, 12/1944), lot 349; C. Col. James W. Flanagan, purchased from Stack's in January 1940 for $845; Flanagan Collection (Stack's, 3/1944), lot 1103; D. New York Collector (J.C. Morgenthau, 10/1940), lot 30; E. Sale 366 (J.C. Morgenthau, 6/1936), lot 65.
From The Harvey B. Jacobson, Jr. Collection of Early Half Eagles.

Coin Index Numbers: (Variety PCGS# 519941, Base PCGS# 8138)

Weight: 8.75 grams

Metal: 91.67% Gold, 8.33% Copper

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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