Heritage World Coin Auctions
FUN Signature US Coin Sale 1251 4-6 & 8-9 Jan 2017
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High Relief Double Eagles
1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS63 PCGS. "A mediocre sculptor is lost.
The sculptor must be either a genius or a nobody."
--Kenyon Cox
Augustus Saint-Gaudens was deeply aware of the implications of the above quote by his friend, the illustrator Kenyon Cox. Saint-Gaudens knew the enduring nature of sculpture, which is one reason he labored for years on his monumental figures. The figure of Liberty used on the High Relief twenty dollar gave him the opportunity to revisit the same figure he had previously used on the Sherman Monument, and make slight design adjustments that were no longer possible on that earlier work. The enduring quality of the design is evident on this example of the High Relief twenty. This is one of the earlier strikes, produced before the problematic fin, or wire rim, was eliminated. The surfaces are bright and the satiny mint luster is interrupted by only the smallest contact marks.
1907 $20 High Relief, Wire Rim MS63 PCGS. "A mediocre sculptor is lost.
The sculptor must be either a genius or a nobody."
--Kenyon Cox
Augustus Saint-Gaudens was deeply aware of the implications of the above quote by his friend, the illustrator Kenyon Cox. Saint-Gaudens knew the enduring nature of sculpture, which is one reason he labored for years on his monumental figures. The figure of Liberty used on the High Relief twenty dollar gave him the opportunity to revisit the same figure he had previously used on the Sherman Monument, and make slight design adjustments that were no longer possible on that earlier work. The enduring quality of the design is evident on this example of the High Relief twenty. This is one of the earlier strikes, produced before the problematic fin, or wire rim, was eliminated. The surfaces are bright and the satiny mint luster is interrupted by only the smallest contact marks.