1804 $5 Small Over Large 8, BD-5, High R.6, MS66 PCGS....

Description

1804 BD-5 Half Eagle, MS66
Small Over Large 8 Variety
Single Finest, Ex: Baldenhofer-Norweb

1804 $5 Small Over Large 8, BD-5, High R.6, MS66 PCGS. Ex: Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection. Bass-Dannreuther Die State a/k. The BD-5 die pairing features a Small 8 Over Large 8 obverse with the reverse showing the E in STATES mostly left of the cloud break and the leaf tip pointing near the center of the I in AMERICA. This obverse type, which John Dannreuther refers to as Normal 8 Over Large 8, is always popular with collectors and enjoys its own listing in the annual Guide Book. While examples of the BD-7 die pair are collectible and those of the BD-6 marriage merely scarce, BD-5 representatives, like the one offered here, constitute a surviving population of just 15 to 18 pieces, though Ron Guth of the Numismatic Detective Agency was able to locate merely nine coins for the roster below.

This example, now graded MS66 by PCGS, was last offered as part of the Norweb holdings in 1987. It was described then as "A superb specimen, well struck, with frosty surfaces. Certainly this is one of the finest known examples of this curious issue." Indeed, it is, with its closest challenger two points behind (ex: Stack-Jung-Pogue).

A Roster of Significant Examples
1. MS66 PCGS. Farish (William Gustav "Bill") Baldenhofer Collection (Stack's, 11/1955), lot 1213; Norweb Collection, Part I (Bowers and Merena, 10/1987), lot 750, $57,200; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Foundation Collection (HBCC# 3085). The present coin.
2. MS64 PCGS. James A. Stack, Sr. Collection; James A. Stack, Sr. Collection (Stack's, 10/1994), lot 1043, $20,900; Oliver Jung Collection (American Numismatic Rarities, 7/2004), lot 91, $48,300; D. Brent Pogue Collection, Part II (Stack's Bowers & Sotheby's, 9/2015), lot 2085, $94,000.
3. MS63 PCGS. Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 5/2008), lot 3179, $37,375.
4. MS63 PCGS. Voigt et al. Collections (Bowers and Merena, 3/1999), lot 2450, $10,350.
5. MS62 PCGS CAC. March Baltimore (Stack's Bowers, 2/2012), lot 4301, $24,265; Dallas Signature (Heritage, 11/2018), lot 3227, $22,800; Naples Collection, Part II (Legend Rare Coin Auctions, 1/2022), lot 215, $34,075; Chicago Collection (PCGS Set Registry).
6. MS62 NGC. Baltimore Signature (Heritage, 7/2003), lot 10263, $10,638.
7. AU58 PCGS. Frederic W. Geiss Collection (B. Max Mehl, 2/1947), lot 1658, $55; Harold S. Bareford Collection (Stack's, 12/1978), lot 155; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, Part II (Bowers and Merena, 10/1999), lot 756, $9,200; Waccabuc Collection (Stack's, 11/2007), lot 1117, $31,050; Chicago ANA (Stack's Bowers, 8/2014), lot 13208, not sold; Chicago ANA (Stack's Bowers, 8/2015), lot 10242, $16,450.
8. AU55 PCGS. FUN Signature (Heritage, 1/2013), lot 7085, $11,750.
9. AU Details -- Improperly Cleaned -- NGC. Pre-Long Beach (Goldberg Auctions, 2/2012), lot 1453, $6,613.

Coin Index Numbers: (Variety PCGS# 519895, Base PCGS# 8086, Greysheet# 198207)

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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