Heritage World Coin Auctions
ANA Signature US Coin Sale 1258 2-6 Aug 2017
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Three Dollar Gold Pieces
1873 $3 Closed 3 MS62 Prooflike NGC. Mint records seem to be incomplete regarding the coinage of three dollar gold pieces in 1873, causing much confusion for students of the series. It seems that either a small business-strike mintage of three dollar gold pieces, using the old Closed 3 logotype in the date, was struck early in the year and not recorded, or a number of restrikes were produced in later years. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth explain the situation in their Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins:
"Mint records are silent on the striking of any 1873 $3 gold pieces for circulation; in fact, they report only 25 Proofs (with no note on the style of the 3). Later writers have suggested mintages from 100 to 1,000 coins, which were struck in 1873, perhaps as late as 1879. ... The authors believe the mystery of the 1873 $3 gold pieces remains to be solved."
The present coin is one of the enigmatic pieces struck in regular-issue format, despite its deeply reflective fields. The design elements are well-detailed, with just a touch of the typical softness on the hair and ribbon bow. The bright yellow-gold surfaces show the expected number of minor contact marks and hairlines for the grade. Census: 3 in 62 Prooflike, 1 finer (6/17).
HID02901242017
1873 $3 Closed 3 MS62 Prooflike NGC. Mint records seem to be incomplete regarding the coinage of three dollar gold pieces in 1873, causing much confusion for students of the series. It seems that either a small business-strike mintage of three dollar gold pieces, using the old Closed 3 logotype in the date, was struck early in the year and not recorded, or a number of restrikes were produced in later years. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth explain the situation in their Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins:
"Mint records are silent on the striking of any 1873 $3 gold pieces for circulation; in fact, they report only 25 Proofs (with no note on the style of the 3). Later writers have suggested mintages from 100 to 1,000 coins, which were struck in 1873, perhaps as late as 1879. ... The authors believe the mystery of the 1873 $3 gold pieces remains to be solved."
The present coin is one of the enigmatic pieces struck in regular-issue format, despite its deeply reflective fields. The design elements are well-detailed, with just a touch of the typical softness on the hair and ribbon bow. The bright yellow-gold surfaces show the expected number of minor contact marks and hairlines for the grade. Census: 3 in 62 Prooflike, 1 finer (6/17).
HID02901242017