Heritage to Offer Gem Quality Proof 1894-S Barber Dime

December 10, 2004 Coins

Heritage to Offer Gem Quality Proof 1894-S Barber Dime

Dallas, Texas: One of the finest-known Barber 1894-S Dimes in existence will be auctioned in Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc. (HNAI), upcoming FUN Platinum Night Auction to be held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on the evening of January 12, 2005.

"As one of the 'Big Three' of American numismatics, along with the 1913 Liberty nickel and the 1804 silver dollar, acquisition of this rarity has long been regarded as a pinnacle of collecting," said Heritage President Greg Rohan. "Of these three rarities, only the 1894-S dime was officially listed in Mint Reports at the time of issue."

"This is the single most important example of this coin from a historical perspective," continued Rohan. "Only three of the nine currently known examples have been described as Gem quality. The Eliasberg Collection coin was described in the May 1996 sale as Proof 65; however, that coin has reportedly been dipped at least twice since the sale. The Eliasberg duplicate, sold by Stack's in 1947, is graded PR66 by NGC, but despite the grade, it is the coin that Eliasberg considered his duplicate, thus is probably no finer than the coin he kept."

"In our opinion," added Mark Borckardt, Senior Cataloger for HNAI, "this coin is equal to the primary Eliasberg coin retained for his collection, and these two are the two finest examples. Both of these coins are superior to the Eliasberg duplicate that was sold by Stack's in 1947, despite its higher certified grade."

Certified by PCGS as Proof 65, this lovely dime has exquisite light blue and claret color, accented by light iridescent toning over mirrored fields. A slight depression below the D of UNITED, along with a lint mark between the final S and the O are specific marks that identify this example. All design features are sharply defined.

Little is known about the 1894-S dimes, although many theories have been presented over the years. Only a few facts are known, everything else is speculation:

1. Only 24 examples were struck and they were struck during the first half of the year, according to official mint records.
2. One or more examples were reserved for the Assay Commission that met on February 13, 1895. Were these included in the 24 coins minted, or were the Assay coins in addition to the 24 examples?
3. All were struck as Proofs, and all but two retain some or full mirrored proof finish today. They were struck from a single pair of dies, indicating all were struck at approximately the same time.
4. Aside from the record in contemporary mint reports, the first public notice that these coins existed was not until the March 1900 issue of The Numismatist.

These four points are the only facts of the 1894-S dime case.

The coin to be auctioned by Heritage is the Daggett Specimen certified Proof 65 by PCGS. The pedigree is continuous back to the day it was made under the direction of San Francisco Mint Superintendent John Daggett; Hallie Daggett; Earl Parker; James Johnson; Abner Kreisberg; World-Wide Coin Co.; Bowers and Ruddy Galleries (offered in Rare Coin Review No. 21, September-October 1974), $97,500; mid-western collector; Superior Galleries (8/1992), lot 104, $165,000; Spectrum Numismatics; David Lawrence Rare Coins and David Schweitz to an anonymous collector.

Featured consignments to the 2005 FUN Signature Sale include The Jerry Bagne Collection of Proof Morgan Dollars, The Paul Bolyard PCGS Registry Collection of Washington Quarters, The Richard Chouinard Collection of United States Coins, The Cincinnati Collection, The William and Harrison Hiatt Collection, The Dr. Hoffnagle Collection of Morgan Dollars, The Gene Holland Collection of United States Coins, Part II, The John C. Hugon Collection of Barber Coinage, The Kenny's Bennies PCGS Registry Set of Franklin Halves, The Gold Rush Collection, The Krist Collection, The Lang Collection, The Wes Rasmussen Collection, The Larry Rausch Collection, The Paul Taylor Collection, The Tillamook Collection, and The Stan Zurawski Collection.

Catalogs for this auction will be available in mid-December. To purchase a catalog, please contact Nicole Jewell, 800-872-6467, 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th Floor, Dallas, TX, 75219.

Images, descriptions, and prices realized from past auctions are available in the Permanent Auction Archives at the Heritage website.