LOT Heritage Rare Coin Galleries  /  2006 November Signature Coin Auction #420  / 

2771

1908-S $20 MS67 PCGS. This piece is tied for the fines

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1908-S $20 MS67 PCGS. This piece is tied for the fines
<B>1908-S $20 MS67 PCGS.</B></I> This piece is tied for the finest certified by PCGS, and it is one of the most important coins in the present sale. All 1908-S double eagles, and only 22,000 were actually struck, represent the newly modified With Motto design type. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth wrote about every U.S. gold coin issue in their 2006 <I>Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins,</B></I> commenting:<BR><BR>The 1908-S issue is the first truly low-mintage issue. As with most San Francisco coinage of the period, the coins are awash in satiny luster and decent strikes. Positional differences have been observed in the location of the mintmark, and at least two obverse dies were used to coin this limited issue. A total of 537 pieces at the time of publication have been graded between ANACS, NGC, and PCGS, the vast majority in circulated or very low Mint State grades. Obtaining an example as high as MS-63 is quite a challenge for date collectors, with approximately 100 examples certified as MS-63 or finer. The finest examples known are four coins now five graded MS-67, all by PCGS. In terms of the entire series, this date ranks as the 14th rarest of the 54 dates and mints."<BR><BR> It is instructive to compare these comments written in 2006 with the comments by David Akers a quarter century ago: "With the sole exception of the 1907 High Relief, the 1908-S has the lowest mintage of any regular issue Saint-Gaudens double eagle. Therefore, it is not surprising that the 1908-S is a scarce date in all grades. In Unc. it is one of the rarest dates in the entire series and it actually had fewer Unc. auction appearances in my survey than any date in the series other than the 1933, 1927-D, 1921, 1920-S, and 1931-D. Most 1908-S twenties are in the circulated grades, fairly evenly spread between VF, EF, and AU. Average quality Uncs. are very scarce and Choice or Gem quality pieces are rare." For all practical purposes, the 1982 comments by David Akers and the 2006 comments by Garrett and Guth are the same. The available supply of Gem quality examples of the 1908-S double eagle have remained constant over 25 years.<BR> On this example, the mintmark is well above the left curve of the 0 in the date and leans slightly to the left. It appears to be from the same punch that was used for the much smaller diameter 1909-S VDB cents with a small chip inside the upper curve. Both sides are fully detailed with frosty gold luster and considerable pale orange toning at the borders. Additional coppery toning is evident on both sides. The surfaces are virtually perfect with only the slightest abrasions visible with magnification. Population: 5 in 67, 0 finer (10/06).<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Coin/Currency (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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