LOT Heritage Rare Coin Galleries  /  2006 October Dallas Signature Coin Auction #428  / 

2689

1879 $4 Flowing Hair, Judd-1635, Pollock-1833, R.3 PR6

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:1,100.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1879 $4 Flowing Hair, Judd-1635, Pollock-1833, R.3 PR6
<B>1879<$4> Flowing Hair, Judd-1635, Pollock-1833, R.3 PR64 Cameo NGC.</B></I> Charles Barber's beautiful Flowing Hair design for the four dollar gold piece is well represented by this Choice Cameo proof specimen. The obverse shows the portrait of Liberty with flowing hair and the head facing left. The obverse periphery displays an inscription reading: * 6 * G * .3 * S * .7 * C * 7 * G * R * A * M * S *, with the date below. LIBERTY is inscribed on a coronet situated diagonally through Liberty's upper hair details. On the reverse, a five-pointed star in the center shows incuse lettering that reads: ONE STELLA/400 CENTS. Surrounding the star are the mottoes E PLURIBUS UNUM and DEO EST GLORIA. The reverse peripheral legends are: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (above) and FOUR DOL. (below). The similar George T. Morgan design of this type, known as the Coiled Hair variety, is much scarcer, and the small number of survivors has been estimated at anywhere from one to three dozen. Morgan's design uses the same reverse die, and differs only on the portrait of Liberty, who wears her hair in coiled braids.<BR> The origin of the four dollar gold piece, or "Stella," is rooted in John A. Kasson's proposal for a gold coin of approximately the same value as the Austrian and Dutch 8 florins, French 20 francs, Spanish 20 pesetas, and Italian 20 lire. Kasson believed that this new denomination would expedite trade between the United States and Europe, but his idea never gained widespread acceptance.<BR> This is an extremely impressive near-Gem specimen of the Pollock-1833 variety. The upper right reverse field shows a touch of milky patina, but the other field areas on both sides of the piece are watery and dark, and stand out in sharp contrast to the elegantly frosted features. Typical roller marks are noted over the central devices, on both obverse and reverse, but the strike is sharp and almost all design elements are crisply defined, except for some of the hair detail above Liberty's ear. There are no reportable distractions on either side, but a couple of tiny spots on the reverse, located just below the L in PLURIBUS and just barely to the right of L in DOL, respectively, could be employed as pedigree markers in the future.<BR><I>From The Tide Collection.</B></I>
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