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1787 New York Excelsior Copper, Indian and Eagle, Breen-991, W-5800, Low R.7, MS62 Brown NGC. ...
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Sold on Apr 22, 2021 for:
$132,000.00
Bid Source: Live: Phone bidder
Description
1787 New York Excelsior Copper
MS62 Brown
W-5800, Indian and Eagle, Ex: Mills
Among the Finest Known
1787 New York Excelsior Copper, Indian and Eagle, Breen-991,
W-5800, Low R.7, MS62 Brown NGC. An exceptional example of this
very rare issue, one of only 10 pieces we have traced. The figure
of the Native American shows remarkable detail, with the belt
around his tunic and the strap of his quiver of arrows visible.
Only the highest points of his chest are not fully struck up. The
fields are hard and smooth, with only a couple of minor nicks to be
found under magnification. The obverse was struck off-center, with
the tops of BERTATE off the edge. In contrast, the reverse is
almost perfectly centered, with some level of dentilation visible
around the entire rim. The eagle is a bit soft in the center, which
is typical even for high-grade examples. The reverse fields are
simply extraordinary, so smooth and free of any wear that even die
polishing lines remain visible. With a provenance tracing back to
the magnificent collection formed by John G. Mills, of Albany, New
York, this is a highly important Confederation-era copper.The New York Excelsior series attracted the attention of some of the earliest numismatic writers in the United States. In 1858, John Hickcox published An Historical Account of American Coinage, in which he wrote that they, "are commonly called the New York tokens, and were struck, of course, without the authority of law. No enactment in relation to coinage was ever made by the state of New York." He attributed the pieces to John Bailey and Ephraim Brasher, noting that they had, "in 1787 petitioned the assembly in relation to the manufacture of coppers." In The History and Coinage of Machin's Mills, Jack Howes, James Rosen and Gary Trudgen steer the attribution of these pieces away from Bailey and Brasher, arguing that they are "believed to have been struck at Samuel Atlee's New York City brewery mint in the early part of 1787 on behalf of Thomas Machin's coinage petition to the New York State Legislature on March 3, 1787." As such, they are linked to the complex series of interrelated issues produced at Machin's Mills. Listed on page 68 of the 2021 Guide Book.
Census of New York Indian/Eagle Coppers
1. MS65 Brown NGC. Lorin G. Parmelee Collection (New York Coin & Stamp Co., 6/1890), lot 458; James Ten Eyck (B. Max Mehl, 5/1922), lot 185; Carl Würtzbach; Virgil M. Brand (Journal #126696, Bowers & Merena, 6/1984), lot 958; Donald G. Partrick.
2. MS64 Brown PCGS. Illustrated at the PCGS Coin Facts website and different from any of the following. No provenance is known.
3. MS62 Brown NGC. John G. Mills Collection (S.H. & H. Chapman, 4/1904), lot 346; Allison Jackman (Henry Chapman, 6/1918), lot 141; Virgil M. Brand (Journal #87305); later, William Anton; Alan Weinberg; Jon Hanson; Donald G. Partrick. The present example.
4. AU58 PCGS. Henry Chapman Collection (ANS 1914 Exhibition Catalogue, Plate 39); Col. James Ellsworth; Garrett Family Collection (Bowers & Ruddy, 11/1979), lot 602; Gil Steinberg (Stack's, 10/1989), lot 105. This coin was misidentified in the Garrett and Steinberg sales as being the Stickney example.
5. AU55 PCGS. F.C.C. Boyd Collection; John J. Ford (Stack's, 5/2004), lot 313.
6. XF. Richard Picker; John L. Roper, 2nd (Stack's, 12/1983), lot 276.
7. VF-XF. Matthew Stickney Collection (Chapman Brothers, 6/1907), lot 239; DeWitt Smith Collection (12/31/1908); Virgil M. Brand (Journal #46440, Bowers & Merena, 6/1984), lot 959.
8. VF. Discovered in England; Americana Sale (Stack's, 1/2002), lot 234.
9. VF Details. Heritage (1/2004), lot 2001.
10. Fine Details - Repaired PCGS. Donald G. Partrick (Stack's, 11/1974), lot 337; Henry P. Kendall Foundation (Stack's, 3/2015), lot 2512.
Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# B8DW, PCGS# 439, Greysheet# 218)
View all of [The Donald G. Partrick Collection ]
Auction Info
2021 April 22 - 25 Central States US Coins Signature Auction #1329 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
April, 2021
22nd-25th
Thursday-Sunday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 26
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 854
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
20% of the successful bid per lot.
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