LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 Jan. FUN Signature Coin Auction #454  / 

3353

1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS65 PCGS

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:40,001.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS65 PCGS
<B>1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS65 PCGS.</B></I> The relationship between Charles Barber, imperious Chief Engraver of the United States Mint, and Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the artistic visionary who stood at the forefront of American Renaissance-era sculpture, was not always antagonistic. When the Mint began its search for new coinage designers with its planned 1890 competition, the shortlist of 10 artists included Saint-Gaudens, who was not only consulted by the Mint, but received the recommendation of Barber, according to a letter cited by Roger Burdette in his 2006 work, <I>Renaissance of American Coinage 1905 - 1908</B></I>. Saint-Gaudens declined to compete, but after the coinage redesign challenge was delayed and opened to the public, he agreed to serve on the jury, which convened in 1891.<BR> Burdette suggests that the face-to-face interaction and arguments over aesthetics resulting from the competition soured the connection between them: "Barber and Saint-Gaudens evidently disagreed on many points of art during the jury's discussions, and had little in common. It is likely they were so far apart in their artistic understanding that neither listened to what the other had to say. ... The 1891 competition turned the two against one another for the rest of their lives."<BR> Even the longstanding antagonism between the artists would not stand in the way of Theodore Roosevelt, and the High Relief double eagles were struck over the Chief Engraver's indignant protests. This Gem survivor shows evidence of a wire rim at the right obverse. The shining surfaces are primarily apricot-gold with elements of sun-yellow and orange. Decisively struck as always with two small rim marks at the lower obverse, but no flaws of any significance at the centers. An important and beautiful example.<BR><I>From The Florissant Collection.</B></I><BR><BR><B>Coin Engraver:</B> Augustus Saint-Gaudens<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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