1652 Shilling Pine Tree, Large Planchet, Pellets MS(PCGS#45369)

March 2020 Baltimore U.S. Coins Auction

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

376

等级

MS62

价格

132,012

详细说明

Iconic Mint State Noe-1 Pine Tree Shilling 1652 Pine Tree Shilling. Large Planchet. Noe-1, Salmon 1-A, W-690. Rarity-2. Pellets at Trunk. MS-62 (PCGS). 71.0 grains. The ultimate numismatic icon of early America, there is perhaps no more widely desired colonial coin than a nice Noe-1 Pine Tree shilling. Choice, frosty and lustrous, the surfaces are glossy and beautifully toned in even gold-hued gray. Both sides are well centered, with complete legends, though only hints of the external beaded border are visible here and there. A thin striation is visible at the first S in MASATHVSETS, but the obverse shows no post-striking defects of even trivial consequence. A thin scratch connects the decorative circle of beads and M in DOM at the base of the reverse, so close to the edge as to be nearly invisible, and a very shallow abrasion blends into the field right of the denomination. The die state is advanced, with a significant clash from the denomination beneath the tree and heavy horizontal breaks at the central reverse. A thin crack connects the tops of the denomination letters to the bead at left, and the heavy breaks at N in AN DOM stretch into the date and distend the field above it. The fields of both sides are textured. However "classic" is defined, the Noe-1 Pine Tree shilling fits the title. A collector in 1840 would have been just as excited to own this coin as one today, and this would be just as appreciated in a museum as at a coin club meeting. While Mint State Noe-1 Pine Tree shillings are far from common, this coin's prime desirability does not rest upon its rarity. Instead, it is the essential distillation of everything desirable about an early American coin: an antique appearance, a great backstory, a recognizable design, all deliverable to anyone who aspires to collect such things. While nearly any collector can own a Pine Tree shilling, few ever obtain one of this sort of quality. Prior to its offering in our November 2018 Baltimore Auction, this example had been in the same hands since before many of the modern generation of numismatists were born. Provenance: From the Q. David Bowers Collection. Earlier from our (Stack's) sale of the Henry Gibson Collection, November 1974, lot 3; our (Stack's) sale of the C. Ramsey Bartlett Collection, February 1966, lot 2; our sale of the Archangel Collection of Colonial Coins and 1792 Coinage, October 2018 Baltimore Auction, lot 7009. Lot tags included. PCGS Population (Pellets at Trunk variety only): 3; 6 finer (MS-63+ finest). PCGS# 45369. NGC ID: 2ARU. Click here for certification details from PCGS.