1888 G$1 Indian Princess Gold Dollar PCGS PR66+DCAM (CAC) Ex. Simpson - Condition Rarity!

Here's a stunning rarity, a true beauty, and one that would make a numismatist proud to own. This proof issue of the Gold $1 Indian Princess represents the penultimate year of the gold dollar series (1849-1889). Crafted by James B. Longacre, the Indian Princess is among the most breathtaking of all American numismatic designs. PCGS has graded 3 in PR66+ DCAM, with 2 finer. In CAC, there are 5 in PR66/66+ DCAM with none finer. That makes this specimen a Condition Rarity, as well as an excellent candidate of a Registry Set of the simply finest works of numismatic art.

Bob R. Simpson, who once owned this spectacular coin.

Ron Guth writes of the revised design of 1854:

The revision of the $1 gold piece in 1854 coincided with the issuance of the $3 gold piece, both of which were designed by James Barton Longacre (more widely known for his Indian Cent design). The obverse design shows a figure of Liberty, whose head is actually smaller than on the Type One Gold Dollars, but the effect is the same because of the addition of the Indian headdress. The reverse is a nearly exact copy of the Flying Eagle Cent, and was used also on the $3 gold piece. Overall, the diameter of the Type Two Gold Dollar is larger than the Type One, but because the weight remained the same, the thickness was necessarily reduced.

Following unsatisfactory results with the coining of the Type Two Gold Dollars, further modifications to the designs were deemed necessary. Liberty's head was enlarged, her hair was arranged differently, and the headdress was shifted toward a more horizontal plane. The purpose of these changes was to minimize the number of places where recessed areas in the dies opposed each other, allowing metal to flow into the dies more evenly and allowing the coins to become "fully struck." In general, the changes were successful, although quality control at some of the branch mints (notably, Dahlonega) resulted in poorly made coins with less-than-optimal striking qualities.