Heritage World Coin Auctions
CSNS Signature US Coin Sale 1254 26-28 Apr 2017
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Early Half Eagles
1834 $5 With Motto, Plain 4, BD-3, High R.7, AU58 NGC. Bass-Dannreuther Die State b/c. BD-3 is not the rarest 1834 Capped Head half eagle variety, although since the BD-4 coin is unique and housed in the Bass Core Collection at the ANA Money Museum, BD-3 is by far the rarest collectible variety of this issue. The Plain 4 obverse is paired with the cracked reverse from BD-2, which shows the denomination further left then on the BD-1 tail die.
Tradition states that the Plain 4 Guide Book variety, composed by BD-1 and -3, is more plentiful than the Crosslet 4 variant, and certification totals from PCGS and NGC agree. However, the auction appearance rate of the two types tells a dramatically different story. Since the early 1990s, we have handled an 1834 Capped Head half eagle on 41 separate occasions, but of which only seven represented Plain 4 coins. Of these seven offerings, six were BD-1, and just one was BD-3.
The Bass-Dannreuther reference gives BD-3 a High R.7 rarity factor, and we concur. A study of auction data from the last few decades reveals public documentation of only three examples, of which one is permanently off of the market in the Bass Core Collection at the ANA Money Museum. This substantiates John Dannreuther's estimate of three to five known, since one or two additional pieces may be held in old-time private collections. Below is a roster of the three coins we have been able to identify, including the present near-Mint example.
This piece displays well-struck motifs for the type, although several stars and the eagle's left (facing) wing are a trifle soft. Light handling marks accompany the grade, while some semiprooflike reflectivity is yet visible in the protected regions of the fields. A few tiny ticks along Liberty's jaw serve as pedigree identifiers.
In Early U.S. Gold Coin Varieties, Dannreuther writes:
"The Motto issues of 1834 are very popular with collectors and they represent the last of the old tenor gold coins. The romance associated with these coins, combined with their rarity and the uniqueness of each obverse and reverse die, make them irresistible."
Roster of Known 1834 BD-3 Half Eagles
1. MS64 NGC. Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldbergs, 9/2008), lot 1258 (misattributed as BD-1); ANA Signature (Heritage, 8/2010), lot 3495.
2. AU58 NGC. Gilbert Steinberg Collection (Superior, 9/1996), lot 2265. The present coin.
3. Ungraded. Jonathan Rosen Collection (Stack's, 9/1968), lot 340; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection; ANA Money Museum.
From The Hutchinson Collection, Part II.
HID02901242017
1834 $5 With Motto, Plain 4, BD-3, High R.7, AU58 NGC. Bass-Dannreuther Die State b/c. BD-3 is not the rarest 1834 Capped Head half eagle variety, although since the BD-4 coin is unique and housed in the Bass Core Collection at the ANA Money Museum, BD-3 is by far the rarest collectible variety of this issue. The Plain 4 obverse is paired with the cracked reverse from BD-2, which shows the denomination further left then on the BD-1 tail die.
Tradition states that the Plain 4 Guide Book variety, composed by BD-1 and -3, is more plentiful than the Crosslet 4 variant, and certification totals from PCGS and NGC agree. However, the auction appearance rate of the two types tells a dramatically different story. Since the early 1990s, we have handled an 1834 Capped Head half eagle on 41 separate occasions, but of which only seven represented Plain 4 coins. Of these seven offerings, six were BD-1, and just one was BD-3.
The Bass-Dannreuther reference gives BD-3 a High R.7 rarity factor, and we concur. A study of auction data from the last few decades reveals public documentation of only three examples, of which one is permanently off of the market in the Bass Core Collection at the ANA Money Museum. This substantiates John Dannreuther's estimate of three to five known, since one or two additional pieces may be held in old-time private collections. Below is a roster of the three coins we have been able to identify, including the present near-Mint example.
This piece displays well-struck motifs for the type, although several stars and the eagle's left (facing) wing are a trifle soft. Light handling marks accompany the grade, while some semiprooflike reflectivity is yet visible in the protected regions of the fields. A few tiny ticks along Liberty's jaw serve as pedigree identifiers.
In Early U.S. Gold Coin Varieties, Dannreuther writes:
"The Motto issues of 1834 are very popular with collectors and they represent the last of the old tenor gold coins. The romance associated with these coins, combined with their rarity and the uniqueness of each obverse and reverse die, make them irresistible."
Roster of Known 1834 BD-3 Half Eagles
1. MS64 NGC. Pre-Long Beach Auction (Goldbergs, 9/2008), lot 1258 (misattributed as BD-1); ANA Signature (Heritage, 8/2010), lot 3495.
2. AU58 NGC. Gilbert Steinberg Collection (Superior, 9/1996), lot 2265. The present coin.
3. Ungraded. Jonathan Rosen Collection (Stack's, 9/1968), lot 340; Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection; ANA Money Museum.
From The Hutchinson Collection, Part II.
HID02901242017