(1835-8) Token HT-221 Copper Atwood's Railroad Hotel NY, BN MS(PCGS#629436)

August 2019 ANA U.S. Coins Auction Rosemont, IL

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

325

等级

MS63BN

价格

32,187

详细说明

New York--New York. Undated (1835-1838) Atwood's Railroad Hotel. HT-221, Low-201, W-NY-200-10a, Musante GW-152, Baker-510A. Rarity-6. Copper. Reeded Edge. 25 mm. MS-63 BN (PCGS). Medal alignment. Sharply defined with attractive deep reddish-brown color overall. A few minor toning spots are noted, the most prominent of which at the final letter E in GEORGE on the obverse is a particularly useful identifier. As Bowers writes in his 2015 Guide Book of Hard Times Tokensfor Whitman: "All bets regarding rarity [for HT-221] were off when 12 from the Ford Collection were auctioned in 2013, ranging in grade from Fine to three MS-64 -- a shock and surprise. It seems that these were hoarded by Ford for many years, including from the holdings of F.C.C. Boyd and Wayte Raymond. Illustrated is the finest of the Ford pieces [offered here]. The MS-64 pieces realized $3,055 for one and $3,535 for [two] others. It was speculated that if such had been offered singly the price would have been much higher. As these are dispersed into the marketplace the rarity will of course remain the same, but the availability will sharply decrease." This example provides significant and rare Choice Mint State quality for a type that, excluding our Ford XXIII sale, is typically offered in VF and EF grades. This is one of the most famous tokens of its era, combining the appeal of a transportation token plus a Washington token. Lyman H. Low did not list it as a Hard Times token, seemingly unaware of its era, in absence of being dated. Russell Rulau did additional research and placed the token as circa 1835 to 1838, with no citations given. The reverse die (Washington side) was also used by Bale & Smith for their own token (HT-227). Provenance: From our sale of the John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, Part XXIII, August 2013, lot 22176, where it was certified MS-64 BN by NGC. The plate token for the variety in the 2015 Whitman Guide Book of Hard Times Tokensby Q. David Bowers. Click here for certification details from PCGS.