4745

1926 $2 1/2 Sesquicentennial MS67 ANACS. The 1926 Sesq 1926[$2 1/2] Sesquicentennial MS67 NGC.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
1926 $2 1/2 Sesquicentennial MS67 ANACS. The 1926 Sesq 1926[$2 1/2] Sesquicentennial MS67 NGC.
<B>1926<$2 1/2> Sesquicentennial MS67 NGC.</B></I> Ex: Swiss America/Dr. Merritt. The 1926 Sesquicentennial Exposition, held in Philadelphia to commemorate the 150th anniversary of American independence, was the occasion for the issuance of commemorative half dollars and quarter eagles. March 3, 1925 legislation provided for the production of no more than 200,000 gold Sesqui $2.50 pieces in addition to a number of silver half dollars. In May and June 1926, 200,226 quarter eagles were struck at the Philadelphia Mint, the odd 226 being for assay purposes. The majority of coins sold went to the general public, where many were mishandled, cleaned, or made into jewelry. According to Mint records, 154,207 Sesqui quarter eagles (or more than three-quarters of the total mintage) went to the melting pot.<BR> Several thousand 1926 Sesqui quarter eagle survivors have been certified through the MS64 grade level by PCGS and NGC. Fewer than 2,000 Gems have been graded, as have only 150 or so Premium Gems. A mere three coins are graded MS67!<BR> According to David Bowers in his <I>Commemorative Coins of the United States,</B></I> nearly all better grade specimens are very lustrous and frosty. Strike is another matter, however. Bowers writes that the dies for the 1926 Sesquicentennial quarter eagle were executed in unsatisfactory low relief, with the result that finished coins are often indistinct in areas.<BR> As well struck as any of this type that we have seen, this undeniably beautiful example presents surfaces that are exquisitely toned and exude amazingly effulgent luster. Lovely pastel shades of mint-green, orange, rose and peach are intermingled on each of the two sides. With diligent examination and the aid of a magnifier, a mere handful of minute surface nicks can be detected. To this cataloger, it seems unlikely that a more visually pleasing representative of this issue exists, at