1427

1860 Proof-65 PCGS. OGH.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / US Coins - Gold Start Price:50,000.00 USD Estimated At:150,000.00 - 225,000.00 USD
1860 Proof-65 PCGS. OGH.
SOLD
220,000.00USD+ (38,500.00) buyer's premium + applicable fees & taxes.
This item SOLD at 2017 Mar 10 @ 02:11UTC-5 : EST/CDT
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1860 Proof-65 PCGS. OGH.
This deep honey-gold Gem Proof Liberty eagle displays varied pale orange-peach highlights in a bold light source. The strike is as sharp as ever seen for the No Motto type, as should be expected from a Proof of this caliber. In particular, Liberty’s portrait and hair are seemingly carved from living gold with a texture and depth not frequently seen in the design type. A whisper of cloudiness in the fields speaks of the original nature of this rarity. It could easily have been dipped or otherwise treated by a “doctor” of such arts at some point, but this specimen appears to be as handed down from the Mint to one collector after another with no harsh treatment along the way. The OGH (Old Green Holder) PCGS encapsulation tells us that it has been over a decade since this coin was out of a holder. Faint raised die polishing lines are seen on both sides with a loupe though a tilted angle to a light will reveal them to the unaided eye. Additionally, a “birthmark” of sorts is found at the lower right base of the first T in STATES where a tiny fishhook-shaped lint mark can be seen, forever identifying this specimen.

The Proof eagle mintage for the year is placed at 50 pieces, a modest figure for the era. Breen (Encyclopedia, 1988) expostulated that there were “at least 30 Proofs sold in sets, rest melted January 1862 as unsold; not over 10 traceable.” Breen was not far off the mark on that statement, even today some 29 years after the fact. We have records of two PCGS-certified examples of the issue – of which this is the finest by two grading points -- and five NGC-certified examples, the best by that firm a Proof-64 example of the date. If the figures are accurate, seven individual coins certified, and if we make allowances for one or two more “raw” Proofs of the date that could be quietly resting in old-time collections, a liberal estimate of survivors would be around 10 to 12 pieces. That figure takes into account museum specimens such as the Smithsonian Institution and the A.N.S .Collection in New York City. By any and all standards, this is a rare date Proof eagle.

That this pre-Civil War issue has come down to us over the course of 157 years and remained a Gem is remarkable. Also remarkable is the fact that you now have an opportunity to acquire this rare beauty, a coin that is easily the finest certified Proof of the date extant. Don’t let this rare bidding opportunity slip away!

PCGS Population: 1; none finer.

PCGS Coin Facts