Lot 823
1854-O. Arrows. NGC graded Specimen 63. A needle sharp strike with full mirrored fields, all, overlaid with lovely natural golden and mottled blue toning. Popular first year of the arrows type. Pop 1; the only example graded "Specimen."
According to the Heritage Auctions cataloger of this Specimen 63 example in the 2008 A.N.A. sale catalog, "To our knowledge this is the only Proof striking of the 1854-O half dollar. We were able to trace the pedigree of this unique piece through Breen's brief mention of it on page 235 of his 1977 Proof Encyclopedia: 'Date slants up to r., 54 touch. Reed Hawn:183, $1,300, unverified.' Examination of the photo of Reed's coin in the Stack's catalog and this piece positively identify this as the coin from his historic offering of half dollars. The description in the Stack's catalog in 1973 was succinct and unambiguous: 'A magnificent Brilliant Proof, with full glittering surface even in the stripes of the shield on the reverse. There is no doubt that this is a specimen striking, not only because of its mirror surface, but also because of the perfection of strike. A lovely coin with pale russet and golden toning.'
"The surfaces of this piece have uniform reflectivity over each side, and the striking details show pinpoint definition. We do not know the reason for such a coin to have been struck, and Breen does not speculate. Perhaps it was simply because of the institution of the Arrows design, or perhaps it was struck on order for a collector [or staff member?] with Mint connections in the mid-1850s."
The true story behind this marvelous coin is now lost to history as far as we can tell, but the physical attributes of the coin stand as evidence that something special was done to create a Specimen striking in New Orleans in 1854. This is the only coin even rumored to exist as a specimen or Proof striking of the 1854-O half dollar. It may well rank in the same class as the unique Specimen 63 1856-O Double Eagle whose fame as gone into the hall of records for all time.
Estimated Value $50,000 - 55,000.
Ex 2008 ANA; ex Reed Hawn.
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| Realized $54,050 |
