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Sale 78
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Lot 1752
1795. Small Eagle BD-3 Rarity 3+ NGC graded AU Details. Reverse improperly cleaned. Well struck on a problem free planchet with traces of luster still present. All lightly toned. In our opinion, a strictly AU53 example. George Washington was helmsman of our fledgling ship of state when this Half Eagle came off the coining press at Philadelphia's new federal Mint. Washington saw to it that production began on the right foot. From time to time while he was in town he would stop by to offer a word of encouragement to the Mint workers or to simply watch the operation. Who knows: maybe the Mint's master even let him strike a few Half Eagles himself. Possibly this Half Eagle!
The Mint reports give 1795's coinage total as 8,707. Collectors have long suspected that the vast majority went into the melting pots over the years. Estimates of surviving numbers vary, ranging all the way up to 5% or 8% of the original. Be that as it may, whatever the actual number extant, few can match the historical importance or distinguished look of the piece offered here. Anyone who has been searching for a coin which epitomizes the United States as she peered with youthful eyes upon a wide, complex world in the eighteenth century will find this 1795 Half Eagle a splendid example (PCGS # 8066) .
Note: Robert Scot’s first gold coins were the Half Eagles of 1795 with the Small Eagle reverse. This workhorse series starts with the many varieties of the first year of issue, now believed to include 12 Small Eagle combinations. In the past, this number has variously been reported as 14 or even 16.
The demand from Type collectors has made the Small Eagle series a popular one. Several early (very wealthy) collectors has extensive holdings of these, by die variety, by die state too! BD-3 is recognizable by its Wide Date. Star 11 joins Y with one arm of it overlapping the right side of the letter. On the reverse, the upper leaf of the palm branch ends at the foot of I in UNITED. Given a rating of Rarity-3+ by Dannreuther, he estimates there are 175 to 225 known out of the estimated original mintage of 8,700 to 12,106 total for the date. BD-3 is the most often found variety of 1795.
Estimated Value $20,000-UP.
The Del Valle Collection.
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| Realized $44,650 |
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