(1659) MD 1S Lord Baltimore MS (PCGS#34)
The March 2013 Baltimore Auction
- 拍卖行
- Stack's Bowers
- 批号
- 4
- 等级
- XF45
- 价格
- 205,317
- 详细说明
- Undated (1659) Lord Baltimore Shilling. Hodder 1-A, W-1080. Large Bust, MARIAE. EF-45 (PCGS). 77.16 grains. As beautiful an example as has been offered in recent memory, clearly an About Uncirculated coin if there ever was one. Strong frosty luster persists on both sides, a bit reflective and particularly rich on the reverse. The toning is old and lovely, with pale blue fields fading into gold at the obverse periphery, while the reverse shows bold concentric rings of gold and blue that stand as the most attractive toning your cataloger has ever seen on a Lord Baltimore shilling. The fields show light scattered marks and old hairlines, but the only notable issue is a long toned scratch down the cheek and neck of Calvert, extending into the field below &. The strike is superb, including hair detail rarely seen even on higher grade pieces. The grade, as assigned, seems to be a net grade for the scratch, or ignorant of the typical strike for this issue: where wear is present may stand out, but only because those areas (central hair, for instance) are rarely struck up enough to be worn. A coin with this much flash, luster, and pizzazz is difficult to assess as only an EF. Mr. Craige called this piece "Choice Gem!," and indeed its eye appeal far surpasses nearly every other Lord Baltimore shilling in existence. Interestingly, this variety was not present in the Norweb Collection sales, though another Rarity-8 Lord Baltimore shilling was present. Perhaps Mrs. Norweb decided having two Baltimore shillings was a bit much and traded this one away. She made similar choices with her Lord Baltimore groats (she owned the unique Small Head but not the common variety). Looking at the Norweb material, the Lord Baltimore sixpence in Norweb III:3401 has very similar toning. Its provenance is Parmelee:294 to Harlan Page Smith to the magnificent Robert C. W. Brock collection at the University of Pennsylvania. Could this piece have followed the same path on its way to receiving such
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