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1852 G$1 MS69 PCGS. When Alexander Hamilton created th

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:52,500.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1852 G$1 MS69 PCGS. When Alexander Hamilton created th
<B>1852 G$1 MS69 PCGS.</B></I> When Alexander Hamilton created the original text that became the Mint Act of 1792, he recommended a bi-metallic standard including both gold and silver. The unit of this coinage system was the dollar, which he envisioned would be struck in both metals. Hamilton specifically recommended a gold piece of 10 dollars, another of one dollar, a silver piece of one dollar, a silver dime or disme, a copper cent, and a copper half cent. As we know, Congress did not actually include the gold dollar in the Mint Act of 1792, and it would be nearly 60 years before the gold dollar actually became a reality. Gold dollars and double eagles were authorized by Congress in 1849, partly to provide additional uses for all of the California gold that began to make its way to world markets.<BR> This example is instructive for Mint workmanship. When coinage dies were made at the Mint, various combinations of individual digits or multiple digit punches were used to enter the date in the die. In the case of this particular issue, the digits 185 were clearly punched as a single unit, with the final digit added later. This can be determined by visual observation. Note that the digits 185 have less depth (in the die, raised on the coin) than the digit 2, which is clearly larger and heavier.<BR> The gold dollar offered in the present lot is an amazing specimen. It appears to be from new dies with no evidence of lapping or other defects. In a word, this coin is Superb. Both sides have amazing definition of the design, showing every individual element exactly as it was intended by James Longacre. Frosty surfaces have rich orange-gold luster without blemishes of any kind, save for a single minute mark below the digit 5. It is this tiny blemish that prevented an MS70 grade. Without a doubt, this coin in its older green-label PCGS holder represents the ultimate quality Type One gold dollar. Population: 1 in 69, 0 finer (1/06).