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1795 $10 Bust. 13 Leaves, Taraszka-4, NGC MS63

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:100.00 USD Estimated At:100.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1795 $10 Bust. 13 Leaves, Taraszka-4, NGC MS63
<b>1795 &#36;10 Capped Bust. 13 leaves. Taraszka-4. NGC graded MS63.</b> NGC Pop: 14/7 &#40;In earlier days, NGC did not separate the 13 leaves from the 9 leaves variety in its database, but we can assume the above figure comprises exclusively the 13 leaf variety.&#41; The coin is encased in NGC holder #1720198-001. Brilliant and smoothly lustrous &#40;not always an seen eagles of this date&#41;, attractive, and quite well struck, with consistent quality plus a choice planchet. The fields offer some prooflike reflectivity with the sharp devices satiny. This specimen, illustrates the first American &#36;10 gold piece or &#34;eagle.&#34; In MS63, it stands high among known examples, indeed squarely among the top certified examples by NGC. On the obverse the detail is excellent, the hair is sharp except for the highest part of the centers just below the brim of the cap, and the dentils are two-thirds complete. On the reverse the eagle has nearly all of its feathers seen, however fine diagonal adjustment marks are not quite struck out at the breast and a few feathers are missing. Sharp details on the palm and laurel branches, as expected, with clear legends rounding out the reverse. There probably is no such thing as an absolutely perfect ten dollar gold piece of 1795, but this one comes will suffice for any &#34;gem&#34; quality Type set.

Only 5,583 eagles were coined in 1795, and as a type the small eagle &#36;10 is a rarity as well. Mint State examples are particularly troublesome to find, a situation that is somewhat masked by the current population data and the penchant for resubmissions. On the Taraszka-4 variety, the 10th star almost touches the cap &#40;the only die in which this occurs&#41;; on the reverse, a quickly spotted raised comma in the field before the first A in AMERICA must have been a defect in the die as it is seen on all of this variety.

VERY CHOICE MINT STATE 1795 EAGLE.

The mintages were small because little demand existed domestically for eagles. The first United States Mint struck coins to order, for the most part. Bankers and others deposited silver and gold with the Mint, which the Mint&#39;s workers turned into coinage and then delivered to the owners of the precious metals.

Those depositing gold with the Mint in those first years has a preference for the more convenient &#36;5 half eagles to the &#36;10 eagles, ordering more of the smaller denomination than the larger. As best as we can understand, the eagle was too large for small transactions but too small for convenient transportation or storage of large sums. Many 1795-1804 eagles were exported.

Striking gold eagles that were only going to be exported or melted was wasteful of the Mint&#39;s production capacity. Production of this denomination ceased in 1804, possibly under the orders of President Jefferson. The halt in production for the gold eagle proved more than momentary. It wouldn&#39;t be struck for circulation again unti