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

1760

1901 $1 MS64 NGC

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:33,750.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1901 $1 MS64 NGC
<B>1901 $1 MS64 NGC.</B></I> The 1901 Morgan dollar, from a mintage of 6,962,000 pieces, is readily available in circulated grades, but Mint State pieces are rare. At the MS64 level, the 1901 emerges as one of the keys to the set. In this regard, Paul Green, in the January 9, 2007 edition of <I>Numismatic News</B></I>, wrote an article entitled "1901 Morgan $1 Value Contrary to Mintage," in which he attempts to determine "... why a coin with a nearly 7 million mintage is priced like it had a mintage of 70,000."<BR> The immediate question is what happened to the nearly 7 million 1901 examples. Green says: <BR><BR>"At least part of the answer can be found in the fact that the 1901 is relatively available in circulated grades today. The presence of so many circulated examples leads to the first conclusion that at some period, perhaps around 1901, there were many 1901s in circulation. The second logical conclusion is that the 1901 was destroyed in large numbers in the Pittman Act melting. There is never certainty when it comes to that subject, but the 1901 had to have been melted and in large numbers."<BR><BR>Along this vein, David Bowers, in his 2006 <I>A Buyer's Guide to Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States, </B></I>says of the estimated quantity of 1901 dollars melted: "Possibly about 5,000,000 under the 1918 Pittman Act."<BR> There were apparently quality-control problems in the production of 1901 Morgans. Bowers writes in his 1993 <I>Silver Dollars and Trade Dollars of the United States</B></I> that: "Most Mint State 1901 dollars are poorly struck and have inadequate luster."<BR> The current near-Gem does not fit the 1901 Morgan profile given by Bowers. Instead, it displays radiant luster and sharply struck design elements. Most of the hair strands over Liberty's ear are well delineated, as are the eagle's breast feathers. Essentially untoned surfaces reveal just a few minute marks. Census: 16 in 64, 3 finer (6/07).<BR><BR><B>Coin Engraver:</B> George T. Morgan<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Coins & Currency (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>\)
Sign In to Bookmark Lot