1909-O $5 MS63 PCGS....

Description

Outstanding MS63 1909-O Indian Head Half Eagle

1909-O $5 MS63 PCGS. Ex: Cherny Collection. Variety One: The mintmark is weakly impressed and shows doubling on its left side. In 1909 the New Orleans Mint, not having struck a half eagle since 1894 nor a gold coin of any other denomination since 1906, struck a small quantity of half eagles: 34,200 pieces to be precise, making the issue the only O-mint Indian Head half eagle. That was not only the last gasp of the New Orleans Mint, whose fate had been sealed for several years since the new Denver Mint came online in 1906, but it was also the last O-mint gold coinage. The paltry mintage of 34,200 1909-O half eagles must have appeared especially insignificant next to the gargantuan emission of half eagles in 1909 from the Denver Mint, amounting to more than 3.4 million examples!
Although it is conditionally rare and one of several issues in the series that are elusive in the higher Mint State grades, the 1909-O thus bears a special allure "due to its status as a one-year type," as Douglas Winter puts it in Gold Coins of the New Orleans Mint: 1839-1909. The issue appears to have gone directly into circulation with little notice or fanfare, as the typical piece encountered today grades just AU or Choice AU.
In MS63 grade, the present lot is one of only seven examples so graded at PCGS, with 13 finer, while NGC has graded six pieces in MS63, with 16 finer (7/07). As always, those population figures are almost certainly artificially augmented by resubmissions, in the case of this key-date issue likely multiple ones.
While most 1909-Os seem to have rather unattractive patination, the MS63 coin that we offer here displays outstanding color characteristics--a blend of pretty orange-gold and mint-green. The luster is also pleasing, again unusual for the issue. Strike can be a problem on Mint State coins, especially on the lower feathers of the headdress and on the eagle's legs. The present coin is above average in those areas as well. The only hint of minor softness occurs on the mintmark, which is typical for the variety, and on the eagle's shoulder, but even there, all feather detail is visible. A few minute marks on the Indian's cheek and on the raised, exposed fields, especially on the reverse, preclude an even higher grade. Overall, a great representative of this key date.
From The Jim O'Neal Collection of Indian Half Eagles.(Registry values: N10218)

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 25ZK, PCGS# 8515, GSID# 9320)

Metal: 90% Gold, 10% Copper
Weight: 8.36 grams
AGW: 0.24188oz
Mintage: 34,200

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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