1820 $5 Curl Base 2, Large Letters, BD-9, High R.7, AU58+ PCGS....

Description

1820 BD-9 Half Eagle, AU58+
Important Bass Collection Rarity

1820 $5 Curl Base 2, Large Letters, BD-9, High R.7, AU58+ PCGS. HBJ-256. Ex: Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection. This softly lustrous, borderline Mint State example displays attractive antique-gold surfaces with orange accents that surround the raised devices. A sharp strike rises above lightly abraded, slightly reflective fields.
Variety Equivalents: Adams-6, Breen 4-E, Miller-136, Bass-3142.
Obverse Die: The obverse is unique to this die marriage.
Reverse Die: This reverse die is found in six die marriages: 1820 BD-9, 1821 BD-1, 1821 BD-2, 1822 BD-1, 1823 BD-1, and 1824 BD-1.
Bass-Dannreuther Die State a/a: Both dies are perfect with no indication of clash marks, die cracks, or lapping.
PCGS Population Data (10/25): Although PCGS has certified 22 1820 Curl Base 2 half eagles in all grades, this is the only one that is attributed as BD-9.
Significant Examples: We can confirm three examples of 1820 BD-9, with additional auction records that are likely earlier appearances of those three coins.
Breen (1966): Breen cited some of the difficulties tracking appearances in old catalogs: "Reuse of old cuts [photographic images] in the Melish catalogue, not matching the coins, proved confusing here too. A 4-E is illustrated as Melish 1944, but the actual coin was a duplicate of 1943, not proof."
Bass-Dannreuther (2006): "This is another exceedingly rare variety. Of course, as a date, it appears that 1820-dated coins are fairly available, and they are, but with examples spread among nine varieties, the individual pairings, except BD-2, BD-3, and BD-5, are either very rare or exceedingly rare! There are four to six coins of this variety known; Bass owned a single example."
Heritage Commentary: Robert W. Miller, Sr. listed 13 varieties for the 1820 half eagles including six with a Square Base 2 and seven with a Curved Base 2. His variety 139 was not illustrated, and his varieties 132, 135, and 138 were illustrated with composite photos. Miller was at a disadvantage compared to later authors, and his work advanced the knowledge of the early half eagles. It is easy to be critical of past works today. However, in 1997 the Bass coins were not available, and Miller had to rely on the Breen monographs and additional notes, in addition to his own observations and those of the few catalogers who spent time with the series.
Doug Winter Commentary: The various 1820 rarities were masterfully assembled by Harvey Jacobson and he had the good fortune to acquire a number of virtually unobtainable varieties in very high grades.
Provenance: Recorded in the following roster.

A Roster of Significant Examples provided by Mark Borckardt.
1. MS63 NGC. Mid-American (8/1991), lot 692; Bowers and Merena (5/1994), lot 1580 as "Breen 3C;" Stack's (5/2003), lot 2372. Compare this appearance to the entry for the Boyd-Memorable-Melish example.
2. MS63. R.E. Naftzger, Jr. (Paramount, 1982 FPL); Auction '82 (Paramount, 8/1982), lot 1929.
3. AU58+ PCGS. Superior (2/1978), lot 705; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Core Collection/Pittsburgh Signature (Heritage, 8/2023), lot 9054. The present specimen.
A. Unc. F.C.C. Boyd (World's Greatest Collection, Numismatic Gallery, 1/1946), lot 368 (plated at 369); Memorable Collection (Numismatic Gallery, 3/1948), lot 319; Thomas Melish Collection (Numismatic Gallery, 4/1956), lot 1944. The same plate was used for all three catalogs. The Boyd and Memorable appearances are apparently the same coin based on the 1948 description, and both coins were graded Uncirculated. The Melish Collection appearance was graded About Uncirculated.
B. XF. George H. Earle, Jr. (Henry Chapman, 6/1912), lot 2388. The available plate at the Newman portal is insufficient resolution for plate matching.
From The Harvey B. Jacobson, Jr. Collection of Early Half Eagles.

Coin Index Numbers: (Variety PCGS# 519928, Base PCGS# 8127, Greysheet# 198936)

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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