1849 $2.50 Mormon Gold Quarter Eagle PCGS AU55
SOLD
SKU
6649315
Previously offered HA:5364 on 2018 ANA Sale, this coin is described as: "...an attractive Choice AU specimen, with well-detailed design elements that exhibit some light wear in selected areas, like the eye and lower legend on the reverse. The pleasing orange-gold surfaces are lightly abraded and retain substantial amounts of original mint luster. This coin should find a home in a fine collection of territorial gold." The present coin is an attractive Choice AU specimen, with well-detailed design elements that exhibit some light wear in selected areas, like the eye and lower legend on the reverse. The pleasing orange-gold surfaces are lightly abraded and retain substantial amounts of original mint luster. An auction record occurring over one year ago (2/20) and selling for $72,000 would indicate the market is up for this issue.
A classic pioneer gold rarity and the ONLY gold $2.50 quarter eagle struck by the Mormon faith in Salt Lake City as the gold began to come back from the California gold fields by those members of the Mormon Battalion who fought in the Mexican War.
Four denominations were struck in 1849, quarter eagles, half eagles, eagles, and double eagles. The design for all the denominations was basically the same, showing a bishop's mitre above an all-seeing eye on the obverse, with the inscription HOLINESS TO THE LORD around. The reverse exhibits a pair of clasped hands and the date in the center, with the denomination below and the letters G.S.L.C.P.G. (Great Salt Lake City Pure Gold) above. Half eagles of different designs were struck in 1850 and 1860, but the other denominations were one-year issues.
Unfortunately, the Mormons were not skilled assayers, and the intrinsic value of their coinage was found to be considerably less than face value, when analyzed at the Philadelphia Mint. The Mormon coinage soon acquired an unenviable reputation and the coins were seldom accepted, except at steep discounts, outside the Mormon territory. In later years, most of the Mormon coinage was melted for recoinage, making all the issues scarce-to-rare today. The quarter eagles are more elusive than their half eagle counterparts in today's market.
| PCGS # | 10259 |
|---|---|
| Grading Service | PCGS |
| Year of Issue | 1849 |
| Grade | AU55 |
| Denom Type | Mormon Gold |
| Numeric Denomination | $2.50 |
| Mint Location | Private Issue |
| Designation | NONE |
| Circ/UnCirc | Circulated |
| Strike Type | Business |
| Holder Variety | Mormon |
| Grade Add On | NONE |
| Holder Type | N/A |
