Lot 1286
1913. Type 1. PCGS graded Proof 66 PQ. CAC Approved. Housed in an Old Green Holder. Only 1,520 minted. Lovely rich golden toning on both sides. Here, front and center, we are pleased to describe a Gem Proof Type 1 of the finest order whose expansive matte or satin-finish luster adorns the attractively toned surfaces. Piercingly sharp for the date, princely in its obvious virtues and originality, easily finer in sharpness than most in nominally equal grades.
It appears that even the artist who designed this piece, James Earle Fraser, preferred the familiar term "buffalo" to the more zoologically correct bison. Semantics aside, the model for the nickel’s reverse is known to have been a bull named Black Diamond. This animal was a resident of New York City's Central Park Zoo and was already about seventeen years old at the time. Fraser’s own correspondence reveals his exasperation in attempting to keep this beast posed in profile as depicted on the coin. Evidently quite uncooperative, it insisted on confronting the artist head on and would return to this stance immediately after being corrected.
Black Diamond has erroneously been cited as the model for the $10 United States Note of 1901, the so-called "buffalo bill." This note portrays another buffalo, Pablo, a star attraction at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. The mistaken identity is understandable, as the $10 note was in use alongside the nickel through the late 1920s. Pop 90; 51 finer (PCGS # 3988) Estimated Value $2,800 - 3,000
The Gerald Forsythe Duplicate Buffalo Nickel Collection.
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| Realized $5,520 |
