LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 (ANA) Signature Coin Auction #444  / 

1876

1857-S $3 MS62 PCGS

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:30,000.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1857-S $3 MS62 PCGS
<B>1857-S $3 MS62 PCGS.</B></I> As mentioned in the description above, 1857-S threes are usually only encountered in VF-XF grades. In 1857, gold dust was still plentiful in the San Francisco area following the Gold Rush that began in 1848. After the newly built branch mint resolved its problems with a lack of parting acids in 1855, there was still a significant need for lower denomination gold coins on the West Coast. In 1857, there were 14,250 three dollar gold pieces struck in the western facility. While that seems like a paltry number, it is actually a significant mintage for this little-used odd denomination. What is significant, of course, is the extraordinary degree of preservation for this '57-S.<BR> Uncirculated examples of this issue have been recognized and highly sought after since one was offered in an Elmer Sears fixed price list a century ago, followed by one in an Elder sale from 1914 where the coin was described as "excessively rare." Well struck overall, as usual, but not completely brought up with localized weakness seen at the bottom of Liberty's hair curls. The surfaces are surprisingly lustrous with the often-seen mixture of semi-prooflikeness with light mint frost. Each side shows a few small abrasions that account for the grade, and a couple of small mint flakes are on the obverse. The two major services have only recorded four pieces in mint condition, the finest a PCGS MS64 and this is the second finest certified (7/07).<BR><BR><B>Coin Engraver:</B> James B. Longacre<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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