LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 April Rosemont, IL (CSNS) US Coin #1104  / 

2514

1909-D $20 MS66 PCGS

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:65,000.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1909-D $20 MS66 PCGS
<B>1909-D $20 MS66 PCGS.</B></I> Ex: Bass. In the almost-decade since the sale of this wonderful coin from the Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, the PCGS-certified population has increased in MS66 from two coins to four, while the number exceeding it (in MS67, the finest certified at that service), has increased from one to two coins. Those figures are eloquent testament to the extreme rarity of the 1909-D issue in the finest Mint State grades, and in today's exceedingly healthy environment for certified gold coins, it is unlikely that many more certified examples in the future will meet or exceed those lofty levels. <BR> Writing of this very coin in his 1982 text on double eagles (as reprinted in 1986), David Akers commented, "The coin shown above is virtually perfect and is in the Harry Bass Collection. The Eliasberg Collection contains its twin but I know of no others at the Superb Unc. level." More generally concerning the issue, Akers said, "The 1909-D has the fourth lowest mintage of the Saint-Gaudens series after the 1907 High Relief, 1908-S and 1913-S. It is actually much more rare than the High Relief or 1913-S, however, and is virtually identical in both overall rarity and condition rarity to the 1908-S. Of the 55 Saint-Gaudens issues, I rank the 1909-D as the 16th rarest. The 1909-D is usually found in EF or AU condition and average quality uncs are very scarce. Choice or gem quality uncs are rare and most collectors looking for a gem 1909-D have been disappointed because there just aren't that many around."<BR> Even though more than a quarter-century has passed, those words still possess the ring of truth today. The surfaces of this piece offer frosty texture with orange-gold coloration alternating with greenish-gold, and both sides display full cartwheel luster. Close perusal under a loupe reveals a bold strike, absolutely pristine devices, and a coin that actually appears closer to MS67 than MS66, in this cataloger's (GH) opinion. The only mentionable pedigree marker is a tiny dark toning dot near the top of the third ray of the sun (visible in both Akers and the Superior catalog), potentially a reason why this nonetheless-stunning coin failed to achieve an even finer grade. Population: 4 in 66, 2 finer (3/08).<BR><I>Ex: Superior (8/1973); Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, Part III (Bowers and Merena, 5/2000), lot 917.</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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