1859-O $20 MS60 PCGS. Variety 3....

Description

1859-O Double Eagle, MS60
Tied for Finest at PCGS
Condition Census Example

1859-O $20 MS60 PCGS. Variety 3. From a small mintage of 9,100 pieces, the 1859-O is the fourth rarest New Orleans double eagle, narrowly trailing the 1855-O. The surviving population numbers 80-90 examples in all grades and conditions. Of these, perhaps 32-37 specimens are in AU grades, with the population data slightly inflated by resubmissions and crossovers. The typical AU 1859-O shows excessive abrasions on the obverse and reverse, with prooflike surfaces that tend to accentuate these flaws.

There was little numismatic interest in double eagles in general, and branch mint issues in particular, in the 19th century. As a result, auction appearances of the 1859-O were almost unheard of before the 1930s. A few Western collectors, like B.W. Smith in California and Charles W. Cowell in Denver, collected date runs of New Orleans double eagles, which they culled out of circulation in the hard-money economy of the region, but they were almost alone in this pursuit. A few Eastern collectors, like the Clapps and Virgil Brand, also began collecting branch mint double eagles in the late 19th and early 20th century, purchasing coins from the various Mints every year, but they were too late to purchase double eagles from the New Orleans Mint, which struck its last twenty dollar coin in 1879. Large-denomination gold coins from the branch mints were seldom seen in dealer's stocks. As a result, the 1859-O is extremely rare in Mint State today. One very early auction appearance of the 1859-O was in lot 506 of the Charles W. Cowell Collection (B. Max Mehl, 11/1911), where Mehl's terse description reveals both the rarity of the coin and the scant attention it received in that era. Cowell had a run of seven New Orleans twenties and the description of the 1859-O was typically brief, "1859 Very fine. Rare." Of course, all this changed after the Gold Recall of 1933, when collecting gold coins became one of the few legal ways to invest in gold in this country, and today, early branch mint double eagles are in high demand.

This attractive Mint State specimen shows numerous small abrasions on each side but the only mentionable surface flaw is a vertical mark between the neck of Liberty and star 1. Diagnostic clashmarks are evident above and below Liberty's ear and on the nape of her neck. The fields display a combination of semiprooflike reflectivity and light mint frost. This MS60 representative is tied with the former Harry Bass specimen for finest at PCGS, and an MS61 Prooflike piece at NGC is the only one finer (3/21).
Ex: Eagle Collection (Heritage, 1/2002), lot 4025; Doug Winter; New Jersey Collection; Twelve Oaks Collection / Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 9/2016), lot 14179.
From The Cameron Collection. (Registry values: N10218)

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 269B, PCGS# 8927, Greysheet# 9895)

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.

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