1872-CC $20 Gold Coin of the Week 1-24-10

Gold,gold,gold! From 1795 to 1933 United States Government issued gold coins as regular issues for the conduct of commerce.For many centuries possession of this precious metal has served as a universal indicator of wealth, power and prestige. For this reason, gold coins were and are popular with kings, titans of industry, governments and numismatists. Shear beauty and intrinsic value add to the strong demand for the gold coins in the numismatic market.

Even if the numismatic demand for a golden coin suddenly evaporates, the coin will still retain at least some value due to its precious metal content.Compare that to coins made from aluminum, bronze, brass,copper,nickel,zinc,clad or even silver. There are a few coins made from platinum, palladium and such, however these are fantasy pieces sold as investment products and do not have much numismatic value.

Another solid foundation upon which the long standing popularity of gold coins rests is rarity. The "thrill of the hunt" to find a problem free example in itself is a motivating factor for coin collecting and 1872-CC $20 Double Eagle is such a coin. Type II Double Eagles were produced from 1866 to 1876. IN GOD WE TRUST motto was added to the reverse and the denomination was expressed as TWENTY D. Total circulation strike mintage of Type II was 16,161,143 coins.

The Carson City mintage total was 435.163 coins or 2.7% of the total mintage, from which 1872-CC $20 mintage was 26,900 coins. The 1872-CC Double Eagle is a rarity in the context of the Carson City series. Accourding to Rusty, "it ranks up there in a tie for the fourth spot in terms of its estimated survival population".

These coins circulated mainly in the West and most surviving pieces are in a VF to EF grades with a few AU, three or four MS60 and one known MS61 specimen. 1872 was the third year of production of $20 Double Eagles at the Carson City Mint. Coins produced in 1870, the first year of production, are out of reach for the average collector, with VF-30 starting at $235,000. Coins made the second year of production, 1871, are not exactly cheap with VF-30 starting at $11,500.

Current PCGS listings for 1872-CC Double Eagle are as follows,XF-30 at $3,000; XF-40 at $7,500; AU-55 at $22,000 and MS60 at $45,000.

Two obverse and four reverse dies were shipped from Philadelphia to Carson City Mint for this coinage. There are two varieties known: 1-A and 1-B. The coin shown above is of 1-B variety. It differs from 1-A variety by having it's mint mark more widely spaced with the right side of the second C at about the midway point between N and the T in TWENTY.

There are 19 $20 Double Eagles form Carson City Mint. Most of us will not be able to collect all 19, but with determination it is realistic to assemble an 18 coin set,(forget the 1870-CC) and a good starting point is the 1872-CC $20 Double Eagle, since at present it still is available at a reasonable price. So far I have 12 CC $20 coins, that means I have to locate 6 more, without breaking my numismatic budget.

Once the set is complete, then the upgrading starts. This hobby has no end. We must enjoy the process at each stage of collecting, since we are just temporary possessors of these coins. At the end the coin set is sold or passed on to the next generation.

John Armonas

John, that is a wonderful coin. It looks high end for XF45. The reverse is probably better than XF45. I want to emphasize and second your point that we are caretakers along the way and it is a tribute to the employees who labored to create these coins that we preserve them for posterity.

Greetings John

Great C.O.W. post on your 1872-CC $20. You provide much information within the framework of a very enjoyable writing style.

I presently do not own an 1872-CC $20, but when I do acquire one I hope that it'll look as good as your example.

Here's to completing (at least 18 of 19) your set of "CC" double eagles.

Michael the drummer

For a nicer example of this coin visit Southgate Coins site. They feature a 1872-CC NGC AU-58 coin.

John Armonas

Just a point of interest. US gold coins contain 90% of gold which translates into 21.6 karates.

Karatage

24K = 100% gold content
22K = 91.75%
18K = 75%
14K = 58.5%
12K = 50.25%
10K = 42%
9K = 37.8%
8K = 33.75%

John Armonas

Just received my copy of the "Encyclopedia of U.S. GOLD COINS 1795-1933" by Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth.

They describe 1872-CC $20 double eagle as follows,

{As is evident by the large number of examples seen at auction in the last 15 years, the 1872-CC double eagle is scarce but available. This must be qualified by condition, however,as most of the coins seen are Very Fine or Extremely Fine. High-grade examples are very rare. The population data for About Uncirculated condition are greatly inflated by resubmissions. The resubmissions have resulted in the seven or eight coins that have been designated as Mint State in recent years. Just a few years ago there were only two or three coins at that level. Still, 1872-CC double eagle must be considered a true condition rarity. The Smithsonian example rates at just Very Fine. The most recent auction record for a Mint State specimen was in mid-2005, when an NGC MS-60 coin sold for $27,370)

The moral seems to be,buy the book first to learn about your coin and resubmit often to increase its value.

John Armonas