Lot 2108
1819 $5 Capped Head. ANACS graded AU Details, Net EF-40 Tooled-Whizzed. This extremely rare coin is seldom offered in any grade, and this important coin traces back to a 1926 Chapman Sale. The surfaces have been cleaned, with resulting hairlines in the soft gold, and a small area has been repaired behind Liberty's head where a scratch or something similar has been buffed out. Under the scrutiny of a glass, faint swirl lines can be seen in the field in this area, and the face may also have been touched up carefully. While the repair and cleaning lines are certainly present, they are not all that terrible as such things go, and this coin is certainly acceptable given the rarity of this issue. As to the number known, the recent Robert Miller book on Half Eagles estimates the number to be 7 of this die variety, and a total of about 20 for the date, affirming it as one of the classic rarities of the half eagle series.
For generations, half eagles have been collected by advanced numismatists. They are one of the few series that continued uninterrupted for the most part, through the 1805 to 1834 period, while the larger eagle denomination was shelved from 1805 until 1838. One of the real challenges for collectors of the half eagle series was the number of extreme rarities, coins like the 1822 with 3 known, only 1 in collectors hands, and 1825, 5 over 4 with 2 known and the 1815 and 1819 made obtaining a date set a true challenge. Given the mintages of most dates, it would seem that these coins would be available, but we must remember the economics of the time, gold had risen in value by 1805, making the coins worth more as melted bullion than their stated value. Hence, eagles were not produced. What half eagles were produced during this period were usually melted soon after production, and their bullion sold. Their melt value was placed as high as $5.33 by 1834 when the amount of gold was reduced on future coins starting in mid 1834 to below the melt value of $5.00, thus keeping coins in circulation and out of the melting pots. The survival ratio of half eagles from 1807 through the Capped head to left with motto type is likely less than 1 percent of those struck. A foremost rarity that is seldom available in any grade, and it will likely be years before another example of this date is available.
Estimated Value $15,000 - 20,000.
The first time we could trace this specimen was the Chapman sale of 3/1/26; next in Auction '79, 7/27/79:1230; Bowers and Merena's Rusbar Sale, 9/10/90:511 and our Kardatzke Sale, 6/5/2000:1308.
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| Realized $13,225 |
