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1915-S $50 Panama-Pacific 50 Dollar Round MS66 NGC....
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Sold on Jan 11, 2024 for:
$204,000.00
Bid Source: Internet bidder
Description
1915-S Panama-Pacific Round Fifty Dollar, MS66
Pristine Example of a Great Sculptor's Works
1915-S $50 Panama-Pacific 50 Dollar Round MS66 NGC. Robert
Ingersoll Aitken is best recognized in numismatic circles as the
designer of the 1915-S Panama-Pacific fifty dollar gold pieces, as
well as the Missouri Centennial half dollar (1921) and the
California Pacific International Exposition half dollar
(1935-1936). However, these Mint collaborations represent only a
token introduction to his greater works.A native of San Francisco, Aitken studied at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art (today the San Francisco Art Institute), and served as an instructor there from 1901 to 1904. It was during this period that he began to emerge as a renowned sculptor, creating the figure of Victory for the Dewey Monument and the figure of Republic for the William McKinley Memorial, both of which still stand in San Francisco today. Perhaps Aitken's most famous work was the West Pediment of the United States Supreme Court building. Cass Gilbert, the building's architect, backed Aitken as a recommendation to the Supreme Court Building Commission. Aitken was given full creative liberty over the design of the pediment. According to the Supreme Court info sheet on the sculpture, Aitken described his design:
"My simple Sculptural story is as follows: Liberty enthroned-looking confidently into the Future -- across her lap the Scales of Justice -- She is surrounded in the composition by two Guardian figures. On her right 'Order' ... On her left 'Authority' ... Then to the right and left ... two figures each represent 'Council.' Then to the right and left ... two figures represent 'Research' Past and Present."
The West Pediment was constructed in 1934, long after Aitken had built a reputation as one of the United States' preeminent sculptors.
One of Aitken's early works believed to have been displayed at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco in 1915 is his A Thing of Beauty, a two-foot tall bronze sculpture of an idealized female figure that Aitken created circa 1910. In their description of the sculpture, the Reynolda House Museum of American Art writes:
"Although modest in scale when compared to the colossal fountain he created to symbolize the four elements, Aitken's nude figure demonstrates many of the artist's hallmark characteristics: a suggestion of emotion, a preference for classical forms, and a graceful suppression of detail."
These "hallmark characteristics," along with his firmly established reputation, were part of what spurred his involvement with the Mint to create designs for the largest gold coins ever struck for general distribution. Ever a student of emotion, meaning, and symbolism in his works, Aitken leaned heavily into these concepts when preparing models for the commemorative coins. Regarding the Pan-Pac fifty dollar design, the sculptor wrote:
"By way of an explanation of my design, permit me to state that in order to express in my design the fact that this coin is struck to commemorate the Panama-Pacific Exposition, and as the exposition stands for all that wisdom and industry have produced, I have used as the central motive of the obverse the head of the virgin goddess Minerva. She is the goddess of wisdom, of skill, of contemplation, of spinning and of weaving, of horticulture and agriculture. Moreover she figures prominently upon the seal of the State of California. ...
"Upon the reverse I use the owl, sacred to Minerva, also the symbol of wisdom, perched upon a branch of western pine, behind which is seen the web of the spider, suggesting industry.
"With these simple symbols, all full of beauty in themselves, I feel that I have expressed the larger meaning of the exposition, its appeal to the intellect."
Aitken's fifty dollar gold pieces were produced in both Round and Octagonal variants, each receiving a coinage of 1,500 pieces as allowed by the authorizing Congressional legislation. Of these, only 645 Octagonal and 483 Round pieces were sold to the public, hindered in their distribution by hefty price tags applied to them by Farran Zerbe, who was in charge of marketing the coins and various sets thereof. Today, the Round Pan-Pac fifty dollar gold piece designed by Robert Aitken is the rarest individual type in the entire classic commemorative series. Moreover, it is exceptionally rare in high grades, such as the MS66 condition of the present example.
This piece displays rich, satiny orange-gold mint luster and is sharply struck. The usual finely textured luster of the Pan-Pac fifties is apparent, unmarred by handling marks or abrasions. Pan-Pac fifties frequently appear at auction overall, but most are in grades below MS65. This Premium Gem is a rare opportunity for the advanced collector, and a pristine remnant of the works of one of America's greatest classical sculptors.(Registry values: N14284)
Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# BYLU, PCGS# 7451, Greysheet# 10215)
Weight: 83.59 grams
Metal: 90% Gold, 10% Copper
Auction Info
2024 January 10 - 14 FUN US Coins Signature® Auction #1371 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
January, 2024
10th-14th
Wednesday-Sunday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 16
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 864
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
20% of the successful bid per lot.
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