1861-S $10 Liberty Head Eagle, PCGS AU55 - Under 100 Known!
SOLD
SKU
41257703
It is only in recent years that the rarity of the 1861-S Eagle has been made aware to collectors. Doug Winter estimates that there are under 100 pieces known to exist. He tells us that many of those graded by PCGS and NGC are resubmissions. Out of its mintage of 15,500, seemingly all of which were put into circulation, only 75 (including resubmissions) have been graded by PCGS. Of those, just 10 carry the graded of AU55, with 8 finer. Thus this is a Condition Rarity among the under 100 extant today. So if you want a great rarity in U.S. gold, this may be the coin for you.
We at AUCM are quite proud to offer a great rarity from the days of the Civil War: an 1861-S $10 Liberty head eagle, graded PCGS AU55. Few were saved and only one mint state piece (MS61) has been certified by NGC. Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth write of this coin in the second edition of their Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins: "this is one tough eagle." This is the kind of piece found in the most important numismatic collections.
Discussing the design found upon the Liberty Head eagle, numismatic scholar and art critic Cornelius Vermeule writes, "Gobrecht executed new designs (1838) for the $10 denomination in gold, a coin known as an eagle. The bust of Liberty with an inscribed coronet in her hair that graced the obverse was to remain on the gold coinage until 1908." The reverse differed little from the design in use since 1807 on the $5 gold piece save that the wings of the eagle spread from one edge of the coin to the other. Commenting upon the inspiration for Gobrecht's Liberty, Vermeule writes, "The motivation for this Roman head of Liberty stems from vast, varied neoclassicism of the Napoleonic era. Typical of the source is a small painting ... by Jacques-Louis David's contemporary Pierre-Narcisse Guérin, Phythagoras or The Earth is Round, painted about 1800 .... [On the painting it] is the diademed or coroneted, white-robed, seated female that should attract our attention, for she is related to the heads of Liberty on our 19th century gold ... coinage."
| PCGS # | 8634 |
|---|---|
| Grading Service | NONE |
| Year of Issue | NONE |
| Grade | NONE |
| Denom Type | N/A |
| Numeric Denomination | $10 |
| Mint Location | NONE |
| Designation | NONE |
| Circ/UnCirc | Not Specified |
| Strike Type | N/A |
| Grade Add On | NONE |
| Holder Type | N/A |
