1879 $4 Flowing Hair, Judd-1635, Pollock-1833, JD-1, R.3, PR66+ PCGS. CAC....

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1879 Four Dollar Stella, PR66+
Judd-1635, Flowing Hair Type
Exquisite Quality, CAC Approval

1879 $4 Flowing Hair, Judd-1635, Pollock-1833, JD-1, R.3, PR66+ PCGS. CAC. Outside of the collecting community, the mere mention that the United States once engaged in the production of such odd denominations as the two cent, three cent, twenty cent, and even three dollar elicits wonder, bewilderment, and intrigue. For collectors, many of these denominations had their place in history with explicable, if sometimes only vaguely justifiable, contexts in which they were introduced.

Like those coins, the four dollar gold piece, also known as the stella, a late-19th century experiment, provokes a sense of curiosity among the numismatically uninitiated. The four dollar gold piece differs from them, however, in that it generates just as much excitement among collectors young and old, from beginners to advanced specialists. Part of the reason for that reaction is the mysterious nature of the stella. Indeed, every aspect of the pattern's production (the stella was never authorized for circulation), including its mintage, designer(s), and distribution have been debated and disputed. Further confusing matters are the multiple designs for the four dollar stella, including one with a Flowing Hair portrait and another with a Coiled Hair portrait, with each type having been struck in 1879 and 1880. Despite more than a century's worth of investigation, few concrete explanations for their creation have come to light.

What We Know
The most up-to-date research on the four dollar stellas was authored by Roger Burdette and published in the Spring 2015 issue of the Journal of Numismatic Research. Burdette's findings, based on a deep dive through the archives, does much to shed light on what had previously been an area of numismatic inquiry founded on speculation and conjecture, though much remains to be determined.

One of Burdette's most noteworthy conclusions regards the originator of the four dollar denomination, long believed to be former chairman of the House Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures and Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Austria-Hungary John A. Kasson. Burdette highlights that Kasson suggested a new United States coin of equal value of the standard gold coins of the Latin Monetary Union, like the French 20 francs or the Italian 20 lire, that is to say a coin worth $3.88, in order to facilitate trade and exchange between the United States and its partners in Europe. Burdette clarifies that Kasson never suggested a coin worth four dollars; such a denomination was not of equivalent value. Instead, it was the enterprising Philadelphia lawyer and serial inventor Dr. William Wheeler Hubbell, who suggested a four dollar coin. Hubbell had devised a scheme of metric coinage that called for coins to be struck in his own patented goloid composition, including a quintuple stella, to which the four dollar gold piece would be subsidiary. The problem, as Burdette illustrates, was that the idea for a four dollar denomination would not have the desired outcome of facilitating trade with the member countries of the Latin Monetary Union. It would, however, serve to benefit Hubbell financially through his ownership of the goloid patent.

The denomination's origin story, a story of congressional corruption and personal enrichment on the part of William Wheeler Hubbell and his politically connected champion, House Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures Chairmen Alexander H. Stephens, would be enough to create a sort of mystique around the stella. But it is far from the only point of interest relating to the four dollar pattern. There has been considerable speculation about the existence of so-called originals versus restrikes, the significance of the parallel striations on each side of virtually every known 1879 Flowing Hair stella, and whether or not these pieces were struck in goloid (an alloy of gold, silver, and copper in proportions stipulated on the reverse of the stella) or cut-down half-eagle planchets composed of .900 gold. Additionally, while documentation exists relating to the production and distribution of 425 1879 Flowing Hair stellas, no such documentation exists that might explain when or why unknown quantities of 1879 Coiled Hair and 1880 Flowing Hair and Coiled Hair stellas were struck.

A High-End 1879 Flowing Hair Stella
Offered here is one of the 425 documented 1879 Flowing Hair stellas produced between December 1879 and May 1880. This spectacular Premium Gem exhibits sharply detailed design elements, with more detail on Liberty's hair than usual. The always-seen draw bench lines are evident on Liberty's cheek. Yellow and rose-gold surfaces are free of mentionable distractions and the deeply reflective fields contrast boldly with the frosty devices. With its remarkable combination of high technical quality, intense historic interest, and tremendous eye appeal this coin is a Registry Set essential.(Registry values: P1)

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 28AZ, PCGS# 8057, Greysheet# 8779)

Weight: 7.00 grams

Metal: 86% Gold, 4% Silver, 10% Copper

View Certification Details from PCGS