By Greg Reynolds for CoinLink

During one of the auctions preceding the recent ANA convention, an 1854-O Double Eagle ($20 gold coin) sold for a record $494,500. Bowers and Merena (California), a division of Spectrum Numismatics, auctioned this 1854-O along with a wide variety of other U.S. coins on August 4. Herein, I will discuss the supply and demand of 1854-O Double Eagles, and I will put forth my findings regarding the pedigrees (ownership histories) of three of them.

The ‘O’ mintmark on the reverse (back of the coin) stands for New Orleans. All New Orleans Mint Double Eagles struck from 1854 to 1861 are very rare. The 1856-O is probably the rarest, and the 1854-O is the second rarest New Orleans Mint Double Eagle ($20 gold coin). Aside from an 1861 Philadelphia issue with a stylistically different reverse die, the 1854-O and the 1856-O are the two rarest business strike Liberty Head Double Eagles (1850-1907).

Back in March, this same auction firm, Bowers and Merena, auctioned an 1856-O Double Eagle for $356,500. It was from the collection of the late Jack Bains. That was the last time that an 1856-O has sold at auction.

This 1854-O and the Bains 1856-O are both certified, graded and encapsulated by the Professional Coin Grading Service. The PCGS and the Numismatic Guaranty Corp. (NGC) are the two leading grading services. This 1854-O is PCGS graded AU-55 and the Bains 1856-O is graded AU-53.

In my CoinLink article on 1856-O Double Eagles, which was published just prior to the sale of the Bains piece, I estimated that fifteen or sixteen 1856-O Double Eagles exist. The 1854-O is not as rare as the 1856-O.
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By Greg Reynolds for CoinLink

Of all early U.S. gold coins (1795-1834), two of the rarest varieties are the 1810 ‘Large Date - Small 5′ and 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ Half Eagles. These are dramatically rarer than the corresponding 1810 ‘Large Date - Large 5′ and 1810 ‘Small date - Tall 5′ varieties. Does this sound confusing? It should. Many coin collectors, including some who are very advanced, are puzzled by the rarity and significance of these varieties, and fairly wonder whether these are worth bothering with at all. The topic here is the rarity and importance of the 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ $5 gold coin.

Half Eagles are $5 gold coins. An 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ Half Eagle has ‘made the news’ in a big way. On Aug. 5, Stack’s auctioned one for $126,500, undoubtedly an auction record for this variety. The previous record for an 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ was set when Stack’s auctioned another for $65,550 in October 2005.

It is clear that the rage for early U.S. gold coins continues. This has been one of the hottest areas of coin markets for several years. Even so, an 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ has never before sold for nearly as much, and it is not a coin that many collectors seek. It is important to discuss ‘what it is’ and why it sold for so much. Such an inquiry contributes to an understanding of the values of rare varieties and of early gold coins in general.

This 1810 Half Eagle has been graded AU-55 by the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS). Coins are graded on a scale from 01 to 70. There are four AU grades: 50, 53, 55, and 58. There are eleven MS grades, all increments from 60 to 70 inclusive. The PCGS and the Numismatic Guaranty Corp. (NGC) have never assigned a grade above 62 to an 1810 ‘Small Date - Small 5′ Half Eagle. So, a choice uncirculated example may not exist. (more…)