1827 10C SP(PCGS#625361)

August 2019 ANA U.S. Coins Auction Rosemont, IL

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

5173

等级

SP65

价格

287,987

详细说明

Rare and Intriguing Specimen 1827 JR-10 Dime Possibly the First Dime Variety Struck in a Closed Collar 1827 Capped Bust Dime. JR-10. Rarity-6+. Pointed Top 1 in 10 C. Specimen-65 (PCGS). A breathtakingly beautiful example of this well known rarity among die marriages for the 1827 Capped Bust dime. The strike is bold to sharp over virtually all design elements, softening appreciably only at star 7 and a few of Liberty's hair curls on the obverse, as well as the eagle's left talon on the reverse. Direct lighting calls forth modest reflective qualities from the fields, especially on the obverse, the devices universally satiny in texture. Both sides are richly toned, the obverse in a blend of steel-blue, olive-gray and pinkish-apricot while the reverse exhibits subtle lilac-blue and champagne-apricot highlights to dominant olive-gray. The surfaces are expectably smooth for the impressive Gem grade assigned by PCGS, the in hand appearance virtually pristine and even free of useful identifying features. Only upon close inspection with a loupe does the obverse reveal a faint arcing contact mark through Liberty's drapery above the digits 82 in the date that will help track this highly significant coin through future cabinets. The recent discovery of the 1827 JR-14 dime (with two known as of 2015) toppled the JR-10 die pairing as the rarest variety in the entire Capped Bust dime series of 1809 to 1837. This is still a highly elusive die marriage, however, with Winston Zack, Louis Scuderi and Michael Sherril accounting for approximately 15 examples in the 2015 reference Bust Dime Variety Attribution Guide. In addition to its rarity, the 1827 JR-10 is significant for the manner in which it was produced and, more speculatively, the reason it was produced. This die marriage was long believed to have only been known in Proof or, as PCGS has designated the present coin, Specimen format. Enough well circulated examples have turned up, however, to reopen that initial belief to further study. What is known is that despite considerable searching by legions of dime variety collectors and dealer specialists, this variety has failed to turn up more than a few examples over the 35 years since its wide publication in the standard reference on the series, Early United States Dimes: 1796-1837by David J. Davis et al. (the John Reich Collectors Society, aka JRCS). An article on this die marriage entitled "A Closer Look at 1827 JR-10" was published in the John Reich Journalissue number 41 (Vol 13, Issue 3) by Mike Sherrill which listed the number of examples known at the time (eight) and noted that this die marriage may have been intended to create specimen strikings of the close collar design. The unusual diagnostics of this die marriage were discussed at length, as well as changes to the previously used obverse and reverse dies. A listing of the eight examples known at that time was also given. Sherrill was correct in all his observations, although a few more examples have been confirmed since publication of his article. It has long been known that the 1827 JR-10 was a strange concoction, but just how strange has only recently started coming to light. Research by noted authority John Dannreuther combined with study of many of the individual coins in question by Jim Matthews has cast a new light on this rare variety. First off, all other 1827 dimes were struck on the existing open (or closetwo-piece) collar press. This collar was designed merely to hold the planchet in place during the striking process. It did not provide edge reeding to the planchets at the time of striking; the edges were lettered or reeded before the planchets were struck. After the strike, the open collar slid down over the lower (or anvil) die, in the process popping the coin out of the collar for the ejection arm to remove it from the press and insert another planchet by a mechanical method. Edge die chipping on the obverse die (in the anvil position) is likely the result of the collar sliding down repeatedly as seen on various obverse dime dies of the 1820s. Capped Bust dimes struck using the open collar have a slightly greater diameter than their close collar counterparts, and they also exhibit reeding that is not as sharply defined. According to Dannreuther's research, a new coining press arrived at the Philadelphia Mint in November of 1827, the Rush Muhlenberg press, and Chief Engraver William Kneass immediately began to experiment with it. The Muhlenberg press had a closed, fixed collar which fit tightly around planchets and did not move. For ejection, the anvil die actually moved up into the collar and forced the struck coin up and out. This change in collar type and press design forced Kneass to redesign one important feature of the die. The edge or lip of the anvil, or ejection die had to recess, this in order to allow the die to come up within the collar and eject the struck coins. It must also have become obvious to Kneass that a high lip or rim on a struck coin would allow for much longer circulation as the lip would provide structural integrity to the coin's surfaces, and marks and wear would at least be partially deflected from the focal features of the design. For most United States coins struck prior to 1828, the edge feature is a series of thick tooth-like denticles that extend outward to a thin raised edge (if a raised edge was engraved at all; often it was not). The new Muhlenberg press could coin half cents, large cents, dimes, quarters, quarter eagles and half eagles. Copper coins did not require this type of fixed collar, but this new press may have been used to coin the rare Proof large cents of 1827 and 1828 which have polished mirror edges. Kneass' experiments with the Muhlenberg press include such rare and enigmatic coins as the original 1827 quarters, the Proof 1827 and 1828 large cents, Proof 1828 quarters, and the unique Proof 1828 half eagle in the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution. Capped Bust half dimes were also struck on the new Muhlenberg press when the Mint resumed production of the denomination in 1820 (none had been coined since the first decade of the 19th century). The small size of these coins was perfectly suited to this new press. Chief Engraver Kneass did something extraordinary to create the 1827 JR-10 die pairing. He used existing dime dies and reworked them to fit into the new Muhlenberg press. He added a proto lip to the obverse (the anvil die) that enabled that die to slip up between the confines of the close collar and eject the struck coin. The proto lip forms a circular ring at the edge of the coin, but not nearly as sharp or defined as the raised rim seen on later issues. The existing denticles on this obverse die were largely effaced when Kneass added this proto lip to allow enough clearance for the obverse die to perform its ejection function. The inner portion of the denticles remained intact, however, and star positions, repunched features and other features confirm that Kneass carried out his modification to the obverse die that the Mint previously used to strike 1827 dimes of the JR-9 variety. This die is most readily attributable by repunching to star 7 and the close spacing between stars 5 and 6. The reverse die of the 1827 JR-10 was previously used in the 1827 JR-7 marriage. Here Kneass touched up the legend, with clear repunching evident in the JR-10 pairing that is not present on examples of the JR-7 variety. This repunching is boldest on the letter T in UNITED and at the upper left corner of the second letter T in STATES. Both the obverse and reverse dies were presumably heated and re-engraved by Kneass, and reannealed. This is not entirely without precedent at the Philadelphia Mint, but the reheating, re-engraving, re-hardening and reuse of a single die has only occurred a few times. Examples of individual dies being treated in this manner are the obverse dies of the 1806/5 quarter and 1806/5 quarter eagle. The dies usually cracked and were discarded soon after the second round of coinage began as the die steel simply could not hold up to this treatment. To the best of our knowledge, the 1827 JR-10 dime is the only instance in which two dies were reworked in this manner before being paired for coinage. The proto lip or rim that Kneass added to the obverse die can be seen by comparing the photographs of the plate coins for 1827 JR-9 and JR-10 in the early dime reference book by the JRCS. On the JR-9 plate coin (struck first) the long tooth-like denticles extend all the way to the edge of the coin. On the JR-10 plate coin, however, the edge is clearly raised, the denticles are short and shallow, and a heavy solid (proto) rim surrounds virtually the entire obverse (it is most pronounced along the upper border from star 5 to the top of Liberty's cap). This proto rim was obviously imparted by a skilled engraver by turning the die on a lathe and gouging off the extreme top edge of the die. The obverse was then reannealed and made ready for coinage. With both the new Rush Muhlenberg press and Kneass' reworked dies ready for production, the Mint struck a limited number of 1827 JR-10 dimes. The classification of these coins as Proofs, Specimens or circulation strikes has proved problematic. For one thing, Kneass' reworking of the dies was not entirely successful as these coins all have shallow central strikes, likely because the proto lip on this hastily prepared die was not deep enough to fit into the collar entirely, or perhaps he did not want to shatter these already stressed dies. All of the high grade examples exhibit a thin reverse die crack that originates at the letter F in OF and extends through the letter S in PLURIBUS and the eagle's head before terminating at the top of its right wing just below the beak. This crack, which is unknown in the JR-7 pairing, could suggest that the reverse die cracked after a not inconsequential press run in the JR-10 pairing. It can even be surmised that this reverse crack was the reason that Mint employees retired this die pairing, thereby explaining the rarity of survivors. As Sherrill noted in his article for the "John Reich Journal," however, we believe that this crack was caused by stress put on the die during the reannealing process. Then there is the existence of several (well) circulated coins that could indicate a press run for circulation strikes after a few Proofs were struck. This would not be without precedence in U.S. Mint history, and there are actually many instances when the same die pairing was used to produce both Proofs and circulation strikes. Even so, we believe that this is unlikely given both the paucity of survivors and, more significantly, the fact that the dies were clearly specially prepared for a purpose other than simply striking Proofs for presentation purposes. It is our belief that Chief Engraver Kneass prepared these dies specifically for experimenting with the new Muhlenberg press and its close collar and that only a limited press run was intended, and achieved, to test this new equipment. At very least the first few coins produced were in Proof or, as PCGS has ascertained, Specimen format since they do not display the quality of strike that defines Proof coinage attributed to the United States Mint in later years. Per numismatic tradition, however, most high grade 1827 JR-10 dimes are classified as Proofs, and since the same concept is intended we feel that Proof and Specimen are interchangeable when referring to these specially prepared coins. The worn survivors may also have been prepared in Proof/Specimen format and, after a few examples were set aside for Mint personnel to evaluate the work of the Muhlenberg press, the remaining coins were unceremoniously released into circulation. Conversely, after a few Proofs/Specimens were made for evaluation purposes, Kneass had a small number of circulation strikes produced to simulate a wider press run, these latter coins released into commercial channels. In either case the press run from the 1827 JR-10 dies was obviously extremely limited, the specially modified dies having served their purpose in helping Kneass experiment with the new Muhlenberg press. As 1828 unfolded, experiments continued using dies with thin proto lips or rims; perhaps these were existing die steel stock made to the prior old standards that needed to be used up. By 1829 thicker, more uniform rims or lips were imparted to the obverse and reverse dies. The 1827 JR-10 is the forerunner of these later dimes struck in a close collar, and a strong case could be made for assigning these coins pattern status. Regardless, the rarity and significance of this die marriage is beyond doubt, examples enjoying extremely strong demand among early dime variety enthusiasts. As the market as a whole gains a better understanding of these coins and their special purpose, demand will almost certainly extend to other segments of the hobby, perhaps including pattern enthusiasts and others with a general interest in minting technology and techniques. Provenance: Ex F.C.C. Boyd; Abe Kosoff's sale of the "World's Greatest Collection" (Boyd), Part IV, May 1945, lot 476; Adolph Friedman; Abe Kosoff's sale of the Friedman Collection of United States Dimes, ANA Convention Sale, August 1946, lot 243; R.J. Lathrop; New Netherlands' Fortieth Sale, May 1953, lot 480; Jonathan Edelstein; unknown intermediaries; our (Stack's) sale of June 2000, lot 596. Stack's lot tag included. PCGS Population: just 4 in all grades in the Specimen category: 1 in Specimen-61; 1 in Specimen-64; 2 in Specimen-65. PCGS# 625361. Click here for certification details from PCGS.