Lot 3122
1879 Trade Dollar. NGC graded Proof 66 Cameo. Fully white proof trade dollar. Only 1541 proofs minted for this proof only year. Pop 17; 22 finer. Fully radiant -- an important and rare feature for this not all that well preserved issue -- the surfaces display metallic pearl-white "depth" in the mirrors whose pulsating sparkle is almost unnerving to view. All devices are cameo frosted. If you were expecting the design left by the dies to be deficient in robustness, take heart, since this is an exceptional coin and not the usual run-of-the-mill Proof strike. It is, indeed, very bold.
Production of Trade Dollars was limited to Proofs this year: No more business strikes were coined. (In their place, the various mints were striking enormous quantities of Morgan dollars, unacceptable in China, circulating little in the United States, and mostly stored in bank vaults and the Treasury.)
Curiously, when word got around there would be no more three-cent pieces, gold dollars, $3 gold pieces, and no more circulation strike Trade Dollars, there arose in 1879, and continued into 1880, a popular numismatic speculation (later extended to the general public). Word spread that certain coins were of low mintage and would become rare. The "best" condition was considered to be Proofs (business strikes were generally ignored and, in any event, were not available in this series). Emphasis was on inexpensive nickel three-cent pieces and shield nickels, but also focused on Trade Dollars, all of which were minted in record Proof numbers in 1879. A heightened interest developed in other Mint products as well, which is why there is such a large number of 1879 Patterns. Several years later this speculation would extend to regular issue Proof and business strike gold dollars as well as $3 gold.
The fever to salt away Proof Trade Dollars did not develop until the end of 1879, as the monthly Proof production figures show: January: 122; February: 96; March: 75; April: 119; May: 90; June: 140; July: 40; August: 45; September: 89; October: 64; November: 80; and, finally, December with a whopping 581.
Estimated Value $10,000 - 11,000.
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