1852 G50C BG-401 MS(PCGS#10437)
1852 G50C BG-401 MS (PCGS#10437)
August 2021 ANA U.S. Coins Auction
- 拍卖行
- Stack's Bowers
- 批号
- 6358
- 等级
- MS63
- 价格
- 3,576
- 详细说明
- 1852 Round 50 Cents. BG-401. Rarity-3. Liberty Head. MS-63 (PCGS). OGH. Deep, vivid reddish-rose mingles with satiny luster on both sides of this gorgeous example. Appearing finer than the assigned grade, this piece is sure to sell for a nice premium. The present variety vies with two others for recognition as the very first of the California small denomination gold series to be struck and actually used in commerce (the others are BG-426 and 427, both also round 50 cents, but attributed to Antoine Louis Nouizillet as opposed to Joseph Brothers). An example of BG-401 was found on the wreck of the S.S. Winfield Scott, lost at sea off California in December 1853, and recovered in the early 1960s. This variety is also listed in Dickeson's The American Numismatical Manualof 1859, and another example can be found in Snowden's A Description of Ancient and Modern Coins in the Cabinet Collection at the Mint of the United States(1860). This variety and the two others mentioned above all fit the description of the California piece mentioned in the June 29, 1852 edition of the New Orleans Daily Picayune: "We were shown this morning a gold half-dollar. California money, which is so much like the United States gold dollar piece, that the best judges would be completely deceived at a first glance. The half-dollar piece is lighter in color and somewhat smaller in diameter than the dollar. They are of a private issue and have stamped on them 'HALF DOLLAR CALIFORNIA GOLD 1852.'" In the 2003 edition of the reference California Pioneer Fractional Gold, lead author Bob Leonard surmises, "the coin shown to the Picayune's editor must have left San Francisco about the first of June, probably on the steamer Tennessee, or the Unicorn or Independence. This story allows the introduction of Small California gold to be dated to the spring of 1852, probably the later part of May." While the exact type seen on June 29 cannot be determined with certainty, it is thought that either BG-401 or BG-426 are the most logical issues to wear the mantel of "first" California small denomination gold issue. Interestingly enough, Walter Breen surmised that BG-427 could very well wear this honor. Of course, we will never know for certain but Leonard's and Breen's research have certainly narrowed the task down to just a few possibilities. Provenance: From the Oregon Collection. PCGS Population: 29; 16 finer (MS-65 finest). PCGS# 10437. NGC ID: 2BJL. Click here for certification details from PCGS.