1891-CC $5 Gold CC Coin of the Week - 04/18/10

1891-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece

…from the drummer collection


With an original mintage of 208,000 the 1891-CC half eagle is the 19th (of 19) rarest coins from this series. There are 2,800-3,500 estimated survivors in all grades: XF-AU – 1,500-1,800: MS – 1,100-1,400 (figures courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe.)

PRICE ESTIMATES (courtesy of U.S. Coin Digest 2009)

XF-40 $415 - AU-50 $525 - MS-60 $750 - MS-63 $3,150

1891: Republican Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd president of the United States got the Carson mint coin presses back in action in 1889 after a three-plus year hiatus (1886-1888). Samuel C. Wright was the mint Superintendent. 1891 saw a bumper crop of “CC” coin production especially the $5 and $10 gold issues.

The Carson City Mint produced four denominations in 1891:

(SILVER) – Morgan dollars
(GOLD) - Half eagles, eagles and double eagles

COIN: The 1891-CC half eagle is the most available “CC” issue from this series by far. It offers coin “type collectors” an opportunity to own an uncirculated “CC” gold piece for a reasonable price. Although this date is considered to be “common”, a quick comparison to the highly touted 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent shows the 1891-CC $5 to be a far rarer issue. Of the 484,000 1909-S VDB cents minted, almost all survive today. Compare that to an original mintage of 208,000 for the 1891-CC $5 with only around 3000 survivors in all grades and one can truly see which of the coins is the rarer. The 1891-CC $5 should be considered an undervalued coin.

All “CC” half eagles are based on a design by 3rd Chief Engraver of the US Mint Christian Gobrecht (1785-1844) They are all Type II, Coronet head, left, within a circle of stars and with the Motto “In God We Trust” on the ribbon above the eagle. (reverse)

This date is almost always seen in the mid AU to lower uncirculated grades. It’s rarely seen in grades below XF. Beautiful uncirculated examples can be found easily as many examples have been located recently in European banks where they have been safely vaulted away for over a hundred years. The coin shown here from my collection is one of those examples. It has a strong, crisp strike with superb detail, a dazzling golden-yellow hue and tons of frosty luster. It exhibits the slightest hint of peripheral darkening which is the indicator that this coin sat long in a bank vault stacked with other half eagles.

This coin is an almost identical twin to the 1893-CC $5 gold piece in my collection. I will be posting a future “C.O.W.” on that coin. Note that any scratches seen in my coin photos are on the holder surface. This coin has no major imperfections worthy of note. Only the slightest surface rub keeps this coin from a higher grade.
As mentioned above, this coin is plentiful in all AU grades and is easily obtainable in lower MS. It becomes moderately scarce in MS-63 and very scarce in properly graded MS-64. Gems remain extremely rare.

The finest known: NGC lists five examples graded MS-65 while PCGS lists only one.

There are presently two die varieties known but others as yet undiscovered are possible. My coin shown here is a Variety 1-A specimen. (Die varieties explained courtesy of Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint by Douglas Winter – edited by James L. Halperin.)

VARIETY 1-A: “The date is placed somewhat low in the field and is positioned a bit more to the right than on Variety 2-A. The mintmark is somewhat squat and closely spaced.”

VARIETY 2-A: “The date is more central than on Variety 1-A. The reverse is identical.”


1891 HISTORICAL EVENTS:

January 26: Oscar Wilde’s Duchess of Padua premieres in New York City.

March 18: Great Britain is linked to the North American Continent by telephone.

April 1: The Wrigley Co. (chewing gum) is founded in Chicago.

August 24: Thomas Edison patents his Motion Picture camera.

September 20: The first gasoline powered automobile debuts in Springfield, Massachusetts built by John Lambert.



By Michael Parrott (the drummer) LM-0023

Awesome coin, Mike. I really would like to see your coins in hand. They all look similar, the color is really great and the handling marks dont seem to detract from the appearance at all. They look like they should, coming from the Western United States.

Hi Garryn

Thanks for your nice words. My complete set of CC half eagles really is a nicely matched set, especially for a set that GPA averages out to be around XF-40. What else can you expect from a set put together by Rusty and Marie!

I hope to see you this August in Carson City.

Michael the drummer

C4OA members,

Take a close look at this stunning example. With very few exceptions, Carson City gold coins are not found any nicer than this coin. The bright and lustrous surfaces show only small bag marks, no heavy, bottom of the bag "9 iron" divots. The strike is very strong, especially the reverse which has an almost high relief feel to it. Check out the distinct hair details and the razor sharp stars.

CC gold issues are notorious for weak, often flat, heraldic eagle features. This coin shows no such weakness. Every one of the eagle's chest, neck and wing feathers are distinct and bold. The leg feathers and claws display every detail intended by the designer.

Relatively speaking, this particular Carson City minted MS-61 $5 gold coin holds the same aesthetic value to a serious CC collector, as the same coin from the San Francisco mint in an MS-65 holder.

Congrats on this fine coin and the informative posting for this week's Carson City Coin of the Week!

Belay Off

Wow belay...you have a most gifted way with words!

I totally agree with you about all that you stated regarding this coin. It seems like many issues in the later years of the Carson mint saw exemplary workmanship.

There are some downright poorly struck Carson mint coins, particularly from the 1870's and some even from the 1880's. Perhaps the closure of the beloved mint in late 1885 and then its subsequential re-opening in 1889 put more of a sense of pride in the mint workers; they may have been really glad to be back to work!...or perhaps the coiners themselves had more experience under their belts...either way, my specimen here seems to typify the high quality of work done at the Carson facility in the 1890's era.

The extra nice thing about the many beautifully struck 1890's coins from the Carson City mint is that many of the issues are actually affordable for most collectors. We all know that these dates are considered "common", but in reality, one popular run on them could bring them to scarcity levels quite rapidly. Get 'em while the gettin's good!

Many thanks Belay!

Drummer,

A coin of the stature and condition of your MS-61 1891-CC $5 can be considered the comparison standard for the top five or ten percent of all known CC half eagles from 1870 to 1889. Frankly, even when considering all three gold denominations, there are only a handful of uncirculated Carson City gold coins certified above MS 61.

Perhaps Rusty would comment on whether the very few pre-90 $5 gold issues graded MS-62 or MS-63 could even match the strike and luster of your coin!

Belay Off