1854-O $10 Liberty Head Eagle, Large Date NGC AU58

This rare variety from the New Orleans Mint would be a great acquisition for the O-Mint gold specialist.

Please take a look at the images of this rarity, with its attractive golden-yellow surfaces. Gold specialist Doug Winter writes, “The 1854-O Large Date employs a date punch that was intended for silver dollars. According to Breen, it was first publicized in B. Max Mehl’s Atwater sale of 1946 but was almost certainly known before this. The date punch is so large it should more rightfully be called a Huge Date. It is by far the largest size date punch on any New Orleans eagle.”

NGC has graded 32 as AU58 with 15 finer. Collectors Universe prices this variety at $17,500.00 in AU58. When considering that the total mintage for the 1854-O Eagle issue was 52,500, it suggests that a significant amount were hoarded during the Civil War and perhaps melted in later years.

A scale for weighing coinage used at the New Orleans Mint in the 19th century. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.