Goldberg Coins and Collectibles

Sale 53

Pre-Long Beach Coin and Currency Auction

$3 Gold

Lot	Photo	Description	Realized
Lot 1240		1854 $3 Gold. PCGS graded MS-64. Nice even gold toning on both sides. Bright with gold-on-gold somersaulting luster whose radiance on both sides of this cleanly untoned example must be seen to be appreciated. The coin stands head and shoulders above the competition. In fact, the mark-free surface points to this as one of the few really choice MS64s of the first year of issue. A munificent strike, as well as freedom from the usual clash marks typical for this issue where insufficient die pressure occurs all too often. And that is why this is a coin to jump at before it's sale is history. Come prepared for stiff competition. Many learn for the first time what a bitterly hard thing it is for a collector to win such a wickedly beautiful coin when the action heats up during bidding. Pop 118; 27 finer; 19 in 65; 5 in 66; 2 in 67; 1 in 68. (PCGS # 7969) . Why are these so scarce in choice Mint condition? According to published reports, even so late as the 1930s the Treasury was melting Three-dollar Gold pieces as they were received. This was in line with President Franklin Roosevelt's 1933 demonetization order. Since the denomination ceased actively circulating in 1889, the Treasury had nearly fifty years in which to separate out any Three-dollar pieces which flowed through. Is it any wonder, then, why this denomination is one of the rarest, regardless of date, mint, or state or preservation? Estimated Value $8,000 - 8,500. The Mark Gordon Collection. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $8,338
Lot 1241		1854-O $3 Gold. PCGS graded AU-55. Very scarce. Nice golden toning on both sides. Some luster still evident on this, the only O-mint strike of the $3 denomination. Presumably, the Philadelphia Mint saw no need for having the New Orleans Mint strike further examples after this initial production of only 24,000 minted. Pop 35; 19 finer, 17 in 58, 1 in 61, 1 in 62 (PCGS # 7971) . Estimated Value $5,000 - 5,500. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $6,613
Lot 1242		1856 $3 Gold. PCGS graded MS-64. Only 26,010 pieces struck. A lovely and very choice frosty mint specimen with just a hint of delicate golden toning. This piece has a great deal of eye appeal and, further, is far in advance of others in sharpness. To be sure, there is some lightness in the details of the lower half of the date numerals and on the ribbon bow, but virtually all other areas are needle sharp. The luster is luminous reddish gold with variegation in the way it swirls atop the surface. The overall eye appeal is outstanding, the luster virtually three-dimensional, and the grade is one of the finest of its kind. Almost all Philadelphia Mint $3 pieces are rare in Mint condition after 1854. Possibly no numismatist in 1856 desired to save a freshly minted example, but instead, when given the opportunity chose to go with a Proof. Today, 1856 $3s are few and far between in terms of Mint State examples. Pop 26; 2 finer in 65 (PCGS # 7974) . Estimated Value $15,000 - 16,000. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 1243		1874 $3 Gold. AU-58. Well struck and lightly toned with semi reflective fields. We note a few minor hairlines scattered about. A high grade and very desirable example for a type set. James B. Longacre's "Indian Princess" head is one of several he modeled on the Greco-Roman Venus Accroupie profile which had already served for the gold dollar and double eagle, and, from 1854 to 1889, this $3 gold piece. The feathered headdress is supposed to emphasize "national character." Estimated Value $1,700 - 1,800. View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 1244		1874 $3 Gold. PCGS graded AU-50. Lightly toned and lustrous with choice, smooth surfaces free of marks or other deterioration (PCGS # 7998) . Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,300. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 1245		1878 $3 Gold. NGC graded MS-65. A lovely lustrous specimen shimmering with mint frost. An ideal coin for a gem quality 12 piece type set. The resplendent example offered here not only surpasses the normally seen luster woes, but its sparkling surfaces border on an even higher grade. In fact, only scattered tiny marks can be seen with the aid of magnification. Struck with systematic exactness throughout excepting the usual weak areas at the ribbon bow of the wreath along a few topmost hair curls worn by Liberty. Pop 148: 53 in 66; 17 in 67. In a new NGC 4 pronged holder (PCGS # 8000) . Estimated Value $12,000 - 13,000. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 1246		1878 $3 Gold. NGC graded MS-62. A hint of gold toning. Gleaming rivers of soft mint fresh luster deck the surfaces and devices of this well-made $3 gold piece (PCGS # 8000) . Estimated Value $2,400 - 2,500. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $2,760
Lot 1247		1878 $3 Gold. Sharpness of AU-50. Cleaned with a few rim marks and fine hairline scratches. Estimated Value $300 - 350. View details and enlarged photos	Realized $468
Lot 1248		1880 $3 Gold. PCGS graded MS-65. Rich golden toning. Reflective fields. The 1880 $3 has one of the lowest mintage figures in the series: 1,000 struck. This is a dazzling gold specimen burning-gold mint bloom with a lovely reddish patina, powerfully struck and preserved by its former owners with loving care. A blunt impression is sometimes left by the recoil of the dies that struck this design's coinage; just the same, we can report that this 1880 specimen, unlike most others, is outstanding in its detail and crispness. Pop 14; 5 finer. (PCGS # 8002) . With a low mintage of 1,000 coins, the 1880 has always attracted a great deal of attention. Few things in numismatics are more alluring than a small number posted for the number produced. However in the present instance, with the same philosophy being true through the end of the series, higher numbers of $3 gold pieces were saved, relatively, than for the low-mintage coins of the 1860s and early 1870s due to an off-the-radar screen speculative boom in that period. Estimated Value $20,000 - 22,000. The Mark Gordon Collection. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $19,550
Lot 1249		1886 $3 Gold. PCGS graded Proof 65 Cameo. Lovely golden toning. Only 142 proofs minted. One of the most eye-catching Cameo Proofs of this date we have had the pleasure to offer. No doubt one of the very finest known, the current Population Report below lays out the facts. The surfaces are nearly pristine, without the usual signs of handling or annoying hairlines that diminish the value. What's more close examination will find only faint evidence of these. Beautiful orange gold in color, with perfectly struck devices and each is fully frosted, providing spectacular cameo qualities. Since only 142 Proofs were struck, and survival hit or miss, this coin is clearly one of the very best. Pop 5; 1 in 66 Cameo. (PCGS # 88050) . Estimated Value $24,000 - 26,000. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $22,080
Lot 1250		1889 $3 Gold. NGC graded MS-66. Only 2,300 pieces minted. A nice untoned coin housed in the new NGC 4 prong holder. Loaded with gem luster. This is a lovely, healthy-glowing specimen, one whose full-color obverse and reverse being essentially untoned, beams with frosty luster. All this is perhaps obvious from the photos. What we need to emphasize also is that the strike is customarily crisp and detailed for the 1889 release, the last year of issue, with the usual sharp metal flows into the deepest recesses of the dies on both sides including full plumes on Liberty's feather headdress. Pop 8; none finer at NGC (PCGS # 8011) . Estimated Value $19,000 - 20,000. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $21,275