Lot 2177
1839 Head of '38 Large letters. NGC graded AU-53. Popular two-year type coin and only 7,200 minted. A slightly lustrous specimen of the second year of the Liberty Head double eagle. The present piece exhibits normal striking on the stars, but is sharper than typically seen on the hair waves and eagle's plumage; some luster evident within devices, and good eye appeal.
The portrait on this and also the earlier 1838 appears to be shifted forward, at least with the bust tip in relation to the neck, not unlike that found on transitional copper cents of 1839 through early 1843. Later, the orientation of the head was made more centered, and its details modified (reducing the curve of the neck, for instance), and from late 1839 the new style was employed.
As a type within a type the 1838 (in particular) and 1839 eagles are fairly scarce, and when offered they always attract attention.
Following their coinage in 1838, after a lapse from 1804, the eagle would play a key role in American commerce; many newspaper accounts can be found of their use in domestic as well as the import trade. Beginning in 1850 the double eagle displaced the $10 eagle in international transactions. Pop 20; 56 finer.
Estimated Value $5,500 - 6,000.
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