LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 April Rosemont, IL (CSNS) US Coin #1104  / 

2346

1851 $1 Restrike PR63 Cameo NGC. CAC

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:36,250.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1851 $1 Restrike PR63 Cameo NGC. CAC
<B>1851 $1 Restrike PR63 Cameo NGC. CAC.</B></I> The offering of an 1851 silver dollar at auction, whether it is a business strike or a proof, is sure to elicit the attention of collectors far and wide. Of the 33 different Philadelphia Seated dollar issues from 1840 to 1873, the 1851 is considered the rarest date. In his <I>Silver</B></I> <I>Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States</B></I> (1993), Bowers estimates that between 26 and 52 examples out of the original 1,300 mintage of 1851 circulation strike dollars have survived to this day. Regarding the proof restrikes of the same date, he approximates an extant population of between 30 to 60 pieces, thus suggesting that business strike and proofs are of equal rarity. The collective NGC and PCGS population data as of (3/08) confirms this sentiment, with a total of 47 regular issue and 46 proof restrikes having been certified, resubmissions notwithstanding. <BR> Why the Mint would take the time and expense to prepare silver dollar dies for such a paltry mintage of silver dollars remains a mystery. The mystery is further complicated by the fact that a staggering 3 million gold dollars bearing the 1851 date were struck, thus providing ample coinage to meet the needs of commerce. R.W. Julian, in a March 1992 letter to Bowers, states that it is unknown if the 1,300 silver dollars were struck on the behalf of depositors at the Mint or on government account. Whatever the case, collectors soon realized that the acquisition of an 1851 silver dollar could prove challenging. An April 1876 article in <I>The Coin and Stamp Journal</B></I> commented on this rare issue: "From the number coined and recent date, it would not be supposed that it could be considered as a rare piece, yet as will be seen, it has brought some remarkable prices." To meet collector demand it is theorized that Mint insiders clandestinely produced the 1851 proof restrikes for direct sale to numismatists. Bowers suggests two possible timeframes for the coining of the restrikes: 1858-1860 and 1867-1868. <BR> The current coin is one of the few to have been designated as a Cameo by either of the major services. As expected, the fields are exceptionally deep in their mirrored reflectivity, which helps set up contrast against the frosted devices. Variegated reddish patina is seen over each side with a faint accent of blue noted around the margins. Light hairlines explain the PR63 grade and why this piece does not grade higher even though it appears finer. The only surface disturbance worthy of note is a tiny area of pinscratching in the exergual area between the 1 and 8 in the date. Census: 2 in 63 Cameo, 2 finer (3/08).<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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