Lot 4730
1866 $10 Liberty. With motto. PCGS graded Proof 65 Deep Cameo. Encased in PCGS holder 12761871. A golden gem. Bright reddish gold frosted motifs stand boldly out from mirrored fields, the devices seemingly hand-chiseled from a solid ingot of gold and balanced effortlessly in pools of deep reflectivity. A magnificent gem Cameo Proof of the date in all senses, and one momentary look should be adequate to prove our point. Only 30 Proof 1866-dated eagles were minted, all of which carry motto, IN GOD WE TRUST. We would hazard a guess that as few as 10 or so are in collections today, that is all. And of those, only fraction of the examples have been graded by PCGS, though not a another coin in a PCGS holder comes even close to the present specimen, let alone surpass it!
This year, 1866, is a major one in American numismatics, one of a small group of dates that need little or no explanation to the student of the subject: 1873, 1907, and 1916 also come to mind. During the darkest days of the Civil War it was suggested that the nation's spirits might be uplifted by the inclusion of a centralizing motto with more of an emotional punch than the long-time E Pluribus Unum. A number of patterns coins were made with one form of this motto, GOD OUR TRUST (1861-63). However, there followed a much better sounding version in the IN GOD WE TRUST pieces of 1864 and later. The addition of the motto to $5, $10 and $20 gold coins in 1866 created a new Type, and 1866 is now the dividing line for the denominations where the motto supplements the design. This lovely Proof 65 Deep Cameo is the finest certified by PCGS: Pop 1; None finer at PCGS. (PCGS # 98806) .
Estimated Value $140,000 - 150,000.
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