LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 Jan. FUN Signature Coin Auction #454  / 

3454

1849 $5 Norris, Gregg, & Norris Five Dollar,P.E.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:34,500.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1849 $5 Norris, Gregg, & Norris Five Dollar,P.E.
<B>1849 $5 Norris, Gregg, & Norris Five Dollar, P.E. MS62 NGC.</B></I> K-2, R.5. Period after ALLOY. A magnificent example of this important and very early California issue, the strike is exceptionally strong with the bold 5 clearly imparted on the shield. Even the eagle's claws are bold, showing each knobby crag imparted by the dies. Excellent surfaces for the grade, with widely scattered ticks from handling, but nothing deep or detracting. Identifiable by a minor nick which connects the top of the TH of WITH on the obverse. The reverse die shows extensive rim crumbling above the dentils. In terms of rarity, this is one of the very finest to exist of this issue, and a coin which is very difficult to locate in any Mint State grade, especially so with such a full strike.<BR> Norris, Gregg, & Norris are believed to be the first private gold minting company in California. Don Kagin acknowledges, however, in his <I>Private Gold Coins and Patterns of the United States</B></I> (1981) that any one of several other firms (including Bowie & Company and Meyers & Company) may have actually been the first to privately issue gold coinage. Norris and company were merely the first to have been mentioned in a California newspaper (the <I>Alta California</B></I>, on May 31, 1849). Norris, Gregg & Norris soon faced stiff competition from Moffat & Co., and relocated to the central California town of Stockton in 1850. The present glittering gold piece displays substantial original luster and impressive eye appeal for this issue. Listed on page 351 of the 2008 <I>Guide Book</B></I>. Census: 6 in 62, 2 finer (11/07).<BR><I>From The Madison Collection.</B></I><BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Coins & Currency (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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