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***Auction Highlight*** 1859-s TOP POP! Gold Liberty Double Eagle $20 Graded ms63 By SEGS (fc)

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:25.00 USD Estimated At:33,250.00 - 66,500.00 USD
***Auction Highlight*** 1859-s TOP POP! Gold Liberty Double Eagle $20 Graded ms63 By SEGS (fc)
***Auction Highlight*** 1859-s TOP POP! Gold Liberty Double Eagle $20 Graded ms63 By SEGS. Up for Auction is an 1859-s $20 Liberty Head Gold Double Eagle. Between 1848 and 1849, the massive influx of Forty-Niners made San Francisco grow from 1,000 to 25,000 inhabitants in one year; within a decade, the population would double yet again. The San Francisco Mint would strike 636,445 double eagles in 1859, still a healthy number even though the yearly total had decreased every year since the 1.2 million examples of 1856 -- likely the lingering effects of the financial Panic of 1857. Despite its ample mintage, most examples circulated widely in the rough-and-tumble Old West, and the average certified survivor of both issues is Choice XF to AU at best. Unlike the 1856-S and 1857-S twenties, which were available in Mint State in generous supply because of the S.S. Central America recovery, the next shipwrecks in 1865 of the S.S. Brother Jonathan and S.S. Republic meant that most examples recovered there were circulated, as well. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth comment in their Gold Encyclopedia: "There were 67 examples found on the S.S. Republic, but most were About Uncirculated, and only one attained a Mint State designation. Like most of the coins of this era, the 1859-S double eagle is very rare in Mint State, and just one or two are known at the choice level." This Select Mint State 1859-S twenty is well-struck and shows generous, unbroken luster over each side, with a few minor ticks that determine the grade, none worthy of singular mention. Tied for Finest Known. We have included the other ms63 for your comparison.