Lot 3494
1907 $20 St. Gaudens. High relief, flat rim. PCGS graded MS-66. A wonderful high relief which is boldly struck. Untoned with great eye appeal. A knock-out Gem whose balanced color shoots out beams of gold and a superlative strike. Much as the luster is superior, so too is the boldness seen in the designs: the dies left their rigid impression behind with a firm, clear precision. In the best numismatic circles. collectors invariably measure a person's status after the departure of the last guest by the quality of their High Relief $20 gold pieces. And this piece has the pedigreed look of pre-eminence that turns heads and wins awards. Pop 32; 6 finer, 5 in 67, 1 in 68 (PCGS # 9136) .
"High Reliefs were struck in 3 blows of the dies on a medal press in the Philadelphia Mint," according to Stack's, in reference to a 1907 High Relief $20 gold piece the firm auctioned a few years ago. "The first two strikings were made utilizing a plain collar, presumably to prevent the raised edge lettering from being disfigured from successive strikings. It was only during the third striking that the plain collar was replaced by the lettered collar to produce a ''complete'' High Relief Double Eagle with Lettered Edge. Due to the work-hardening of metal that results from the pressures of the striking process, the as yet ''incomplete'' coin was removed from the press after the first and second strikings to be annealed, or softened by heating."
Estimated Value $60,000 - 70,000.
The Dr. Robert Hesselgesser Collection.
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| Realized $70,150 |
