1029

1881 Five-Cents. Hawaiian Nickel. Genuine – PCGS.

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Coins: Hawaiian Territorial Coins & Currency Start Price:350.00 USD Estimated At:1,000.00 - 2,000.00 USD
1881 Five-Cents. Hawaiian Nickel. Genuine – PCGS.
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1881 Five-Cents. Hawaiian Nickel. Genuine – PCGS.
Satiny steel gray throughout. Offered in order of size, this example is arc-clipped from 8 o’clock to noon relative to the obverse. SANDWICH ISLANDS, date, and much of the back of the king’s head present on the obverse, crown, much of garter, and most of numeral 5 on reverse. As rare as it is interesting, this fragment and the others like it have a story to tell. The pattern 5-keneta pieces of Hawaii were made in France at the behest of King Kalakaua while on his 1881 Grand Tour of much of the globe. Supposedly 200 pieces were struck but the reverse motto was misspelled and the king lost immediate interest. This writer doesn’t honestly know whether these are “cutting room” scraps or purposely cancelled remainders from the failed coinage proposal; if any readers know the answer, they are forearmed with excellent knowledge at bidding time. One thing is certain, however – these partial planchets play an important part in the coinage history of the Sandwich Islands, now the 50th star on Old Glory, Hawaii.

PCGS Coin Facts