Heritage World Coin Auctions
CSNS Signature US Coin Sale 1254 26-28 Apr 2017
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Early Half Eagles
1832 $5 Square Base 2, 13 Stars, BD-1, R.5, MS63 PCGS. Bass-Dannreuther Die State a/a. The extended series of Capped Head Left half eagles from 1813 to 1834 is unquestionably the rarest group of regular-issue coins in the entire catalog of United States coinage. Most rarities in other series are explainable by their low mintages, but in the case of this series the mintages are sufficiently high (in most cases) to give one the misperception of availability. The rarity of these coins is explained not by what happened in the mint, but rather what happened after they left the mint.
As the gold to silver ratio continued to climb on the open market in the early decades of the 19th century, it became profitable to melt U.S. gold coins and convert the gold bullion into silver coins. This was extensively done for many years, beginning about 1821, whenever a sufficient number of gold coins could be found to cover the expense of melting. There were also large scale, government sponsored meltings overseas. In Paris in 1831 some 40,000 half eagles of recent vintage were melted and found to be of sufficient weight and fineness. Legislation was finally passed in 1834 that reduced both the weight and fineness of U.S. gold coins, but not before the Capped Head Left series was almost extinct.
The 1832 Capped Head Left half eagle claims a mintage of 157,487 pieces, a typical production total for this era, with two die varieties known for the date. This coin represents the more available BD-1 variety, easily identified by the 13 stars on the obverse. The BD-1 is a very scarce issue, with a surviving population of 40-50 examples in all grades. The BD-2 variety, with the 12 stars obverse, is very rare (5-6 known), so the BD-1 probably accounted for 125,000-150,000 pieces of the reported mintage. This was the only use of the obverse die, but the reverse was used again to strike the BD-2 variety of this date.
The present coin is an impressive Select specimen with well-detailed design elements that show just a touch of the typical softness on the curls by Liberty's ear and some star centers. A large center punch is evident in the shield stripes on the reverse. The pleasing orange-gold surfaces show some scattered, minor contact marks on both sides and the fields display a mix of vibrant mint luster and prooflike reflectivity, with outstanding eye appeal. Population (for the variety): 1 in 63, 1 finer (1/17).
Ex: Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 2/1995), lot 5841.
From The Hutchinson Collection, Part II.
HID02901242017
1832 $5 Square Base 2, 13 Stars, BD-1, R.5, MS63 PCGS. Bass-Dannreuther Die State a/a. The extended series of Capped Head Left half eagles from 1813 to 1834 is unquestionably the rarest group of regular-issue coins in the entire catalog of United States coinage. Most rarities in other series are explainable by their low mintages, but in the case of this series the mintages are sufficiently high (in most cases) to give one the misperception of availability. The rarity of these coins is explained not by what happened in the mint, but rather what happened after they left the mint.
As the gold to silver ratio continued to climb on the open market in the early decades of the 19th century, it became profitable to melt U.S. gold coins and convert the gold bullion into silver coins. This was extensively done for many years, beginning about 1821, whenever a sufficient number of gold coins could be found to cover the expense of melting. There were also large scale, government sponsored meltings overseas. In Paris in 1831 some 40,000 half eagles of recent vintage were melted and found to be of sufficient weight and fineness. Legislation was finally passed in 1834 that reduced both the weight and fineness of U.S. gold coins, but not before the Capped Head Left series was almost extinct.
The 1832 Capped Head Left half eagle claims a mintage of 157,487 pieces, a typical production total for this era, with two die varieties known for the date. This coin represents the more available BD-1 variety, easily identified by the 13 stars on the obverse. The BD-1 is a very scarce issue, with a surviving population of 40-50 examples in all grades. The BD-2 variety, with the 12 stars obverse, is very rare (5-6 known), so the BD-1 probably accounted for 125,000-150,000 pieces of the reported mintage. This was the only use of the obverse die, but the reverse was used again to strike the BD-2 variety of this date.
The present coin is an impressive Select specimen with well-detailed design elements that show just a touch of the typical softness on the curls by Liberty's ear and some star centers. A large center punch is evident in the shield stripes on the reverse. The pleasing orange-gold surfaces show some scattered, minor contact marks on both sides and the fields display a mix of vibrant mint luster and prooflike reflectivity, with outstanding eye appeal. Population (for the variety): 1 in 63, 1 finer (1/17).
Ex: Long Beach Signature (Heritage, 2/1995), lot 5841.
From The Hutchinson Collection, Part II.
HID02901242017