Heritage World Coin Auctions
Dallas Signature US Coin Sale 1253 4-6 Apr 2017
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High Relief Double Eagles
1907 $20 High Relief, Flat Rim, AU58 PCGS. Augustus Saint-Gaudens' MCMVII High Relief double eagle is justly regarded as the most beautiful regular-issue U.S. coin. This iconic issue claims a limited mintage of 12,367 pieces, and about 70% of those coins were of the Wire Rim variety, with a thin fin of metal around the edge of the coin. This feature, caused by the extrusion of metal through the tiny gap between the collar and the die when the coin was struck, was considered undesirable at the time. Mint personnel worked hard to eliminate it by making slight changes in the dimensions of the planchet and modifying the upset angle slightly. By mid-December, the technicians had perfected their technique and the offending fin of metal was eliminated. Flat Rim High Reliefs were struck during the last few weeks of the year.
A trace of wear on the high points of Liberty's knee and breast, and on the top edge of the eagle's front wing, are sufficient to keep this specimen just barely out of the Mint State category. This pleasing near-Mint piece shows the sharply detailed design elements expected of a High Relief, with the scarcer Flat Rim of the coins struck after December 16. A fine scratch is visible in the left obverse field. Still an attractive example with pleasing satin yellow surfaces.
Ex: John Stimson, Sr. Collection, Part One (Heritage, 1/2008), lot 4977, which realized $12,650.
From The R. Thayer Sheets Yorktown Collection.
HID02901242017
1907 $20 High Relief, Flat Rim, AU58 PCGS. Augustus Saint-Gaudens' MCMVII High Relief double eagle is justly regarded as the most beautiful regular-issue U.S. coin. This iconic issue claims a limited mintage of 12,367 pieces, and about 70% of those coins were of the Wire Rim variety, with a thin fin of metal around the edge of the coin. This feature, caused by the extrusion of metal through the tiny gap between the collar and the die when the coin was struck, was considered undesirable at the time. Mint personnel worked hard to eliminate it by making slight changes in the dimensions of the planchet and modifying the upset angle slightly. By mid-December, the technicians had perfected their technique and the offending fin of metal was eliminated. Flat Rim High Reliefs were struck during the last few weeks of the year.
A trace of wear on the high points of Liberty's knee and breast, and on the top edge of the eagle's front wing, are sufficient to keep this specimen just barely out of the Mint State category. This pleasing near-Mint piece shows the sharply detailed design elements expected of a High Relief, with the scarcer Flat Rim of the coins struck after December 16. A fine scratch is visible in the left obverse field. Still an attractive example with pleasing satin yellow surfaces.
Ex: John Stimson, Sr. Collection, Part One (Heritage, 1/2008), lot 4977, which realized $12,650.
From The R. Thayer Sheets Yorktown Collection.
HID02901242017