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1872-CC $5 Gold CC Coin of the Week - 7-04-2010
- coindrummer
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- Michael D. Parrott
14 years 4 months ago - 14 years 4 months ago #1254
by coindrummer
1872-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece
…from the drummer collection
The 1872-CC half eagle has an original mintage of 16,980 and is the 3rd rarest coin over-all (of 19) in the “CC” half eagle series. It ranks as the number one rarity however in terms of high grade survivors and is the only “CC” half eagle date unknown in the uncirculated grades. At the top of the Condition Census are two specimens graded AU-58 (by PCGS and NGC respectively) and are possibly the same coin. (Figures are courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe).
Technically speaking, this date is scarce in all grades and very scarce in XF-40. It becomes rare in XF-45 and as of March 2010 is unknown in the uncirculated grades.
PRICE ESTIMATES – 1872-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece (Courtesy of U.S. Coin Digest)
VF-20 - $1,250
XF-40 - $5,000
AU-50 - $20,000
MS-60 - $60,000
With Superintendent Henry F. Rice at the helm, the Carson Mint produced seven 1872 denominations:
SILVER: SEATED DIMES – SEATED QUARTERS – SEATED HALF DOLLARS – SEATED DOLLARS
GOLD: HALF EAGLES – EAGLES – DOUBLE EAGLES
The U.S. presidential election year of 1872 saw Republican Ulysses S. Grant defeat Horace Greeley to win his 2nd term as the nations’ 18th president. Samuel Clemens (AKA Mark Twain) published his book Roughing It. In his book, he described the rough and tumble halcyon days of the Comstock. Virginia City Nevada could easily be referred to as the “Las Vegas” of its day.
Just down the hill in Carson City, coin production at the mint increased by more than 65% over the previous year with seated half dollars accounting for the bulk of that increase. Gold half eagle production dropped slightly however and today less than one half of one percent of the original mintage (16,980) survive. An estimated 100-125 “CC” half eagles from 1872 are all that remain on planet earth.
Estimated survivors in XF to AU: 35-50. Total certified examples in all grades by PCGS and NGC: 83. (Figures are courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe.)
The 1872-CC half eagle is one of the poorest struck gold issues from the Carson Mint. Surviving coins generally show less detail than 1870-CC and 1871-CC half eagles.
OBVERSE: The center portion of the obverse is typically weak especially on the hair that surrounds Liberty’s face. The stars however exhibit a fair amount of sharpness and detail.
REVERSE: The center portion of the coin is weakly struck especially the feathers on the eagle’s neck and the horizontal lines in the shield. Most (but not all) examples have a very visible clash mark from the bottom of the eagles’ beak extending down to the right wing. My coin shown here is one such example. If you look closely, you can see this diagnostic in my photo.
As a result of the generally weak over-all strike characteristics of this issue, many seen today are improperly graded.
1872-CC half eagles were heavily used in commerce and as a result show many surface abrasions. Of the few survivors that remain, most have been cleaned at one time or another. This all adds up to the fact that locating high-end examples with exemplary eye-appeal can be a most difficult task. In my case, I lucked out as I had the help of one of the world’s foremost authorities on Carson City coins, Rusty Goe. With budget guidelines in place, He located a nice problem free example worthy of my complete “CC” half eagle set, all without breaking the bank!
My coin exhibits adequate detail for the grade, a soft satiny gold color with a few remaining small pockets of luster peeking through. It has an over-all pleasing look and there are no problems worth mentioning; thankfully, the only unsightly scratches visible exist on the surface of the holder and not the coin… just good old fashioned wear coupled with a typically weak strike. As the old saying goes, “it is what it is”, and what “it is” is a very scarce and difficult to find antique coin from the beloved Carson City Mint.
Any example in the F to VF range that can be purchased for anywhere close to list price as mine was, offers great value today.
My 1872-CC half eagle is housed in an NGC VF-20 holder and is probably graded as correctly as this issue can be. I do understand though why this date is so difficult to grade properly as it’s hard to discern exactly where “old fashioned wear” and “weak strike” cross the border. The 1872-CC half eagle would probably be better served by grading it on its remaining luster and quality of surface appearance.
My coin shown here, along with my 1876-CC and 1878-CC half eagles (PCGS VF-20) are the lowest graded “CC” half eagles in my complete 19-piece set. The highest graded coin in my set (PCGS MS-61) is an 1893-CC half eagle. My total set GPA is in the XF-40 range. It’s one of approximately seventy to eighty-five complete “CC” half eagle sets that can possibly exist today, regardless of grade.
There are two varieties of this date currently known. (Die varieties explained courtesy of Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint by Douglas Winter – edited by James L. Halperin.)
My example shown here is a Variety 1-B. It shows minor doubling on some of the reverse lettering as described below. My example does not however show doubling on the B in LIBERTY.
VARIETY 1-A: “The date is positioned midway in the field between the neck and the denticles. It slants downwards with the 1 noticeably higher than the 2. The mintmark is high and near the eagle. It is somewhat similar in appearance to the reverse seen on the 1870-CC half eagle and on the first variety of the 1871-CC half eagle. It appears to be the rarer of the two varieties.”
VARIETY 1-B: “On this variety, the mintmark is much lower with both of the letters even at their base. In addition, it is much closer to the VE in FIVE than on Reverse A. Many examples of this variety show minor doubling on some of the reverse lettering. A few have doubling on the B in LIBERTY.”
1872 HISTORICAL EVENTS:
February 20: The hydraulic electric elevator is patented by Cyrus Baldwin.
February 20: The Metropolitan Museum of Art opens in New York City.
March 1: Yellowstone National Park opens and is established as the worlds’ first National Park.
April 2: Samuel F.B. Morse (b. 1791), developer of the electric telegraph dies in New York City.
May 10: Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for U.S. president.
May 30: Mahlon Loomis patents wireless telegraphy.
September 26: The first Shriners temple (called “Mecca”) is established in New York City.
October 2: Phileas Fogg sets off on his around the world trip to return by December 21st or lose 20,000 British pounds in the book Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.
November 5: Suffragist Susan B. Anthony is arrested and fined $100 for attempting to vote in Rochester, NY.
by Michael Parrott the drummer
C4OA Lifer!
1872-CC $5 Gold CC Coin of the Week - 7-04-2010 was created by coindrummer
1872-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece
…from the drummer collection
The 1872-CC half eagle has an original mintage of 16,980 and is the 3rd rarest coin over-all (of 19) in the “CC” half eagle series. It ranks as the number one rarity however in terms of high grade survivors and is the only “CC” half eagle date unknown in the uncirculated grades. At the top of the Condition Census are two specimens graded AU-58 (by PCGS and NGC respectively) and are possibly the same coin. (Figures are courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe).
Technically speaking, this date is scarce in all grades and very scarce in XF-40. It becomes rare in XF-45 and as of March 2010 is unknown in the uncirculated grades.
PRICE ESTIMATES – 1872-CC $5 Liberty Gold Piece (Courtesy of U.S. Coin Digest)
VF-20 - $1,250
XF-40 - $5,000
AU-50 - $20,000
MS-60 - $60,000
With Superintendent Henry F. Rice at the helm, the Carson Mint produced seven 1872 denominations:
SILVER: SEATED DIMES – SEATED QUARTERS – SEATED HALF DOLLARS – SEATED DOLLARS
GOLD: HALF EAGLES – EAGLES – DOUBLE EAGLES
The U.S. presidential election year of 1872 saw Republican Ulysses S. Grant defeat Horace Greeley to win his 2nd term as the nations’ 18th president. Samuel Clemens (AKA Mark Twain) published his book Roughing It. In his book, he described the rough and tumble halcyon days of the Comstock. Virginia City Nevada could easily be referred to as the “Las Vegas” of its day.
Just down the hill in Carson City, coin production at the mint increased by more than 65% over the previous year with seated half dollars accounting for the bulk of that increase. Gold half eagle production dropped slightly however and today less than one half of one percent of the original mintage (16,980) survive. An estimated 100-125 “CC” half eagles from 1872 are all that remain on planet earth.
Estimated survivors in XF to AU: 35-50. Total certified examples in all grades by PCGS and NGC: 83. (Figures are courtesy of The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe.)
The 1872-CC half eagle is one of the poorest struck gold issues from the Carson Mint. Surviving coins generally show less detail than 1870-CC and 1871-CC half eagles.
OBVERSE: The center portion of the obverse is typically weak especially on the hair that surrounds Liberty’s face. The stars however exhibit a fair amount of sharpness and detail.
REVERSE: The center portion of the coin is weakly struck especially the feathers on the eagle’s neck and the horizontal lines in the shield. Most (but not all) examples have a very visible clash mark from the bottom of the eagles’ beak extending down to the right wing. My coin shown here is one such example. If you look closely, you can see this diagnostic in my photo.
As a result of the generally weak over-all strike characteristics of this issue, many seen today are improperly graded.
1872-CC half eagles were heavily used in commerce and as a result show many surface abrasions. Of the few survivors that remain, most have been cleaned at one time or another. This all adds up to the fact that locating high-end examples with exemplary eye-appeal can be a most difficult task. In my case, I lucked out as I had the help of one of the world’s foremost authorities on Carson City coins, Rusty Goe. With budget guidelines in place, He located a nice problem free example worthy of my complete “CC” half eagle set, all without breaking the bank!
My coin exhibits adequate detail for the grade, a soft satiny gold color with a few remaining small pockets of luster peeking through. It has an over-all pleasing look and there are no problems worth mentioning; thankfully, the only unsightly scratches visible exist on the surface of the holder and not the coin… just good old fashioned wear coupled with a typically weak strike. As the old saying goes, “it is what it is”, and what “it is” is a very scarce and difficult to find antique coin from the beloved Carson City Mint.
Any example in the F to VF range that can be purchased for anywhere close to list price as mine was, offers great value today.
My 1872-CC half eagle is housed in an NGC VF-20 holder and is probably graded as correctly as this issue can be. I do understand though why this date is so difficult to grade properly as it’s hard to discern exactly where “old fashioned wear” and “weak strike” cross the border. The 1872-CC half eagle would probably be better served by grading it on its remaining luster and quality of surface appearance.
My coin shown here, along with my 1876-CC and 1878-CC half eagles (PCGS VF-20) are the lowest graded “CC” half eagles in my complete 19-piece set. The highest graded coin in my set (PCGS MS-61) is an 1893-CC half eagle. My total set GPA is in the XF-40 range. It’s one of approximately seventy to eighty-five complete “CC” half eagle sets that can possibly exist today, regardless of grade.
There are two varieties of this date currently known. (Die varieties explained courtesy of Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint by Douglas Winter – edited by James L. Halperin.)
My example shown here is a Variety 1-B. It shows minor doubling on some of the reverse lettering as described below. My example does not however show doubling on the B in LIBERTY.
VARIETY 1-A: “The date is positioned midway in the field between the neck and the denticles. It slants downwards with the 1 noticeably higher than the 2. The mintmark is high and near the eagle. It is somewhat similar in appearance to the reverse seen on the 1870-CC half eagle and on the first variety of the 1871-CC half eagle. It appears to be the rarer of the two varieties.”
VARIETY 1-B: “On this variety, the mintmark is much lower with both of the letters even at their base. In addition, it is much closer to the VE in FIVE than on Reverse A. Many examples of this variety show minor doubling on some of the reverse lettering. A few have doubling on the B in LIBERTY.”
1872 HISTORICAL EVENTS:
February 20: The hydraulic electric elevator is patented by Cyrus Baldwin.
February 20: The Metropolitan Museum of Art opens in New York City.
March 1: Yellowstone National Park opens and is established as the worlds’ first National Park.
April 2: Samuel F.B. Morse (b. 1791), developer of the electric telegraph dies in New York City.
May 10: Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for U.S. president.
May 30: Mahlon Loomis patents wireless telegraphy.
September 26: The first Shriners temple (called “Mecca”) is established in New York City.
October 2: Phileas Fogg sets off on his around the world trip to return by December 21st or lose 20,000 British pounds in the book Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne.
November 5: Suffragist Susan B. Anthony is arrested and fined $100 for attempting to vote in Rochester, NY.
by Michael Parrott the drummer
C4OA Lifer!
Last edit: 14 years 4 months ago by coindrummer.
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