1868

1802 H10C XF45 PCGS.From The Steve Glenn Collection.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:70,000.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1802 H10C XF45 PCGS.From The Steve Glenn Collection.
<B>1802<H10C> XF45 PCGS.</B></I> V-1, LM-1, R.5. The rarity of the 1802 half dime is well known to collectors of United States coins. Only 35 or so pieces are believed known in all grades. Most, of course, are in low grades and David Davis gives a roster of The Fourteen Worst 1802 Half Dimes on page 38 of the Logan-McCloskey half dime reference. There are a surprising number of high grade examples also known of this date, the finest of which is the AU50 Granberg coin that was last sold by Heritage in the 1998 FUN Sale.<BR> David Davis' article is well researched and well worth the time to read, especially if one is interested in bidding on this coin. He has surveyed auction catalogs and found 167 appearances at public auction over a 140-year period, for an average of 1.2 appearances per year. As he points out, the availability of this date has not been uniform. In fact, there were 17 years when only three or four pieces were offered. And there were two nine-year spans, 1894-1903 and 1926-1934, when none were available at auction. This irregular availability is mirrored in Heritage's offerings of this date. We did not handle a single coin between 1976 and 1998. But since that time, this is the eighth coin we have been privileged to auction.<BR> The rarity of the 1802 half dime was recognized almost as soon as coin collecting became popular in the late 1850s. The first coin offered at public auction was in the 1859 sale by Edward Cogan of the J.N.T. Levick Collection, but that piece did not sell. The first actual sale of an 1802 half dime was four years later in the Lilliendahl Collection. That coin, described as in "very good condition" brought $340. In Davis' article (much of which we have obviously cribbed for this description), he points out just how much $340 represented in 1863: The finest known 1794 dollar sold that same year for $285. The price for the Lilliendahl coin stood as a record until Newlin's "Uncirculated" specimen sold for $400 in 1883. As a back-hande <BR><BR><B>Important notice:</B> Heritage usually auctions material at the rate of 200-250 lots per hour. On some occasions eBay Live bid software or the Internet may not be able to keep up with the pace of the auction. We recommend placing a realistic absentee bid now as insurance to avoid disappointment. Occasionally the auctioneer may eliminate or reject an eBay Live bid, and the auctioneer may also reopen a lot after the close of the eBay live bidding (usually because we missed an audience bid), and may reject your bid even if it shows you as the winning bidder. By bidding via eBay Live, you agree that Heritage may award the lot to another bidder at its sole discretion under the circumstances described above or any other reasonable circumstances. Since eBay bids are not shown to us until we open the lot on the floor, we treat those bids just like floor bids. In most cases the floor responds before the eBay bid is presented to us, due to Internet lag time, so for consistency we have made it a policy that floor bids are always considered first over tie eBay live bids. Also please note that all Heritage lots purchased through eBay Live carry a 20% Buyer's Premium. Please make sure you read the Terms and Conditions before you bid. This lot is being auctioned in conjunction with a live floor auction by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers. All final auction and invoice information will be supplied by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers, and all other information should be considered preliminary. Lot:1868 <BR><BR><B>Winning Notification and Billing:</B> After the FINAL session in this auction is complete, Heritage will send e-mail and snail mail invoices. This process normally takes several days. All final auction and invoice information will be supplied by Heritage Galleries & Auctioneers, and all other information should be considered preliminary. <BR><BR>This auction will be conducted on a live auction floor and over the Internet through eBay Live. If you choose to place an absentee bid, please take a moment to <font color='#0000ff'><u><a href='http://pages.ebay.com/liveauctions/help/before/laabsentee.html'>learn how eBay Live absentee bidding works</a></u></font><font color='#000000'>