LOT #3194 |
Current Bid: $9,250
1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim, MS65+ PCGS....
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Description
1907 High Relief Wire Rim Twenty, MS65+
Stunning Luster and Quality
1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim, MS65+ PCGS. With a mind
toward creating for the United States a coinage of some beauty,
President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned the famed American
sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens to create new designs for the
circulating denominations, with the first coins to be visited being
the ten and twenty dollar gold pieces. In Numismatic Art in
America, Cornelius Vermeule notes:"Barber and Morgan would have been the logical artists to redesign these coins, unaltered in essence since 1838 and 1849 respectively, but Roosevelt has been convinced by Saint-Gaudens and others that the artists who were responsible for the academic creations of 1892, the regular coinage and the World's Columbian Exposition coins and medallic reverse, could by no means be expected to produce coins (a numismatic art) that would rival those (that) of classical Greece."
Saint-Gaudens' perspective on what was necessary to create such beautiful coinage would prove to be correct, however, it steadfastly ignored a challenge that the Mint's own engravers Barber and Morgan would have foreseen: limitations in the Mint's mechanical ability to strike high relief coins for mass production. Saint-Gaudens High Relief double eagle design, beloved even today as the most beautiful coin ever issued by the Mint for general circulation, had to be struck multiple times to bring up the design elements well. As a result, in late 1907, Barber was forced to work with Saint-Gaudens' assistant Henry Hering in delivering a low-relief version of the design that, as Saint-Gaudens had predicted, omitted the artistic excellence of the ancient Greek coinage so desired by Roosevelt.
For collectors, though, the High Relief 1907 double eagle remains collectible, and even Gem-quality pieces can be acquired with some patience and funds. The present coin is spectacular compared to its peers, showing bright, glistening mint luster bathed in vivid yellow-gold and sunset-orange hues. It is sharp and largely pristine, save for a thin vertical graze near the left obverse rim at 9 o'clock that will serve as a pedigree marker for this exceptional piece.(Registry values: N7079)
Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 26F2, PCGS# 9135, Greysheet# 10131)
Weight: 33.44 grams
Metal: 90% Gold, 10% 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.
Auction Info
2025 October 2 - 5 GACC US Coins Signature® Auction #1386 (go to Auction Home page)
Proxy Bidding Ends
October
2nd
Thursday
12:50 pm CT
Auction Dates
October
2nd-5th
Thursday-Sunday
Proxy Bidding Time Remaining
7 Days
23h 56m 57s
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 9
Lot Tracking Activity: 46
Page Views: 186
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
20% of the successful bid (minimum $29) per lot.
This lot is in: 1 -
Signature® Premier Floor Session - PREMIER (Live Floor, Live Phone, Mail, Fax, Internet, and Heritage Live):
(Lots 3001-3238) - 1:00 PM Central Time, Thursday, October 2, 2025.
[Proxy bidding ends ten minutes prior to the session start time. Live Proxy bidding on Heritage Live now starts within 2 hours of when the auction opens for proxy bidding and continues through the live session.]
Exhibition Viewing Times, Title Page, Floor Session and License Information
Additional Location Info:
Heritage Auctions
2801 W. Airport Freeway
Dallas, TX 75261
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