1796 $2.50 BD-2, No Stars MS(PCGS#45501)

Harry W. Bass, Jr. IV

拍卖行

Bowers & Merena

批号

114

等级

AU55

价格

634,452

详细说明

1796 BD-2 Breen-6113, Breen-1. Rarity-4. No Stars. AU-55 (PCGS). Attractive greenish gold with very minor hairlines and other small blemishes. The obverse has considerable reflective Proof surface in the protected areas around devices while the reverse is nearly fully prooflike. A few minor depressions in the sur¬face appear to be the result of foreign matter on the die during coining. Light diagonal adjustment marks are at the center of the reverse. Somewhat weakly struck at central obverse and reverse, as usual for this issue. This is an exceptional survivor from a mintage estimated at 963 pieces. The majority of the 100 or so survivors are in lower grades are harshly cleaned, or have other signs of impairment, quite often from use in jewelry. Although clearly not finest known, or even among the top six, this example remains one of the nicer representatives of the No Stars design type on the market today. No doubt, when Harry W. Bass, Jr. selected it for his cabinet, he did so based in part by its great eye appeal. As a single-year design type, minted only for a part of the year 1796, this is an extremely important opportunity for the type collector. The design is unique among United States gold coinage. This is also the first year of the quarter eagle denomination, and a coin of considerable aesthetic appeal. Outstanding quality, rarity, and desirability for the serious specialist and connoisseur. This is a very late die state with extensive obverse die cracks. The obverse die has been lapped, the lowest hair curl ending in three prominent indi¬ vidual pointed hair strands. Usual crack from the border at 9:00 curves up into the left obverse field. A prominent crack through L continues through the cap to hair curls. A crack connects top of B to a dentil above. Another from right base of E lightly joins the front edge of the cap. I he reverse die appears perfect. Design Type Notes on the 1796 No Stars $2.50 The first quarter eagles minted bear the date 1796. The inaugural design is distinguished from the later motif by having no stars on the obverse. The engraver is believed to have been Robert Scot. Designated as the Capped Bust to Right style, the first quarter eagle type of 1796, features the head and shoulder portrait of Miss Liberty facing right, wearing a cloth cap, with LIBERTY above and the date below. There are no stars in the field, giving the obverse a cameo-like aspect. The reason for the omission of the stars is not known. Perhaps the engraver believed that the die would be more attractive without them, in view that there were stars on the reverse. The reverse is of the Heraldic Eagle design similar to that used on gold and silver denominations of the era, this being its first known appearance in coinage (the motif was adopted on the silver half dime in 1800, silver dime in 1798, silver quarter dollar in 1804, silver half dollar in 1801, silver dollar in 1798, $5 gold in 1797 (although, as noted below, a 1795-dated die still on hand was used at that time to make 1795-dated coins), and $10 gold in 1797. Adapted from the Great Seal of the United States, the center motif depicts an eagle with a shield on its breast, holding an olive branch and arrows in its talons, and in its beak a ribbon inscribed E PLUR1BUS UNUM. A galaxy of 16 stars is above (the number of stars was reduced to 13 in 1798) the eagle, with a group of clouds in an arc extending from one wing to the other. On the shield there are 8 vertical solid stripes, a style continued through 1797, after which 6 multi-element stripes were used. The inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounds. There is no mark indicating the denomination. There were two reverse dies, each differing slightly from the other, combined with the No-Stars obverse. Certain numeral and letter punches used on early $2.50 dies were also used on silver dime dies of like diameter. Although the Heraldic Eagle device first appeared in federal coinage on the 1796 $2.50 gold, it had been used earlier elsewhere, including for the 1791-dated Washington Small Eagle copper cents struck in England and the Getz silver Washington hall dollar of 1792. The diameter of the early quarter eagles was standardized at 13 16" (20.6 mm), which was used for the entire coinage of the 1796-1808 era In Description of Ancient and Modem Coins, in the Cabinet Collection at the Mint of the United States, 1860, Mint Director James Ross Snowden described the first issues of the denomination, the two different styles of 1796: "1796. The gold coins of this year have sixteen stars upon the obverse, eight upon each side of the effigy. The first coinage of quarter eagles took place in this year. The first issue, which was made on the twenty first of September, was of the same type as the eagle. The amount, however, was very small, being only 66 pieces. Subsequently the die was altered, and on the eighth of November there was a coinage of 897 pieces of the following type: Obverse same as the eagle. (A portion, and probably a small one, had no stars upon the obverse.) Rev. An eagle with raised wings, holding in its beak a scroll, inscribed "E PLURIBUS UNUM," and grasping in the right talon a bundle of arrows, and in the left an olive branch. Upon its breast is the United States shield. Above the eagle are clouds, and sixteen stars. Legend. 'UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.’” Mintage Figures for 1796 During calendar year 1796 the mintage of the $2.50 denomination amounted to 1,395 pieces, which Walter Breen ( Encyclopedia, 1988, and else¬ where) divided into 963 coins of the No-Stars type and 432 of the With-Stars style. In actuality, no such neat separation is recorded officially, and this is simply a guess based upon deliveries. Coins struck under Warrant 76, September 22, 1796, amounted to just 66 coins, while Warrant 77 of December 8 involved 897 coins. Toward the end of the latter month, 432 additional quarter eagles were struck (but were delivered on January 14, 1797). It is convenient to combine the first two groups, 66+897, to create a mint¬ age of 963 for the No-Stars and the third group, 432, for the With-Stars, but, as noted, this is simply a guess. Nor is it by any means certain that 1796- dated dies were discarded at the end of 1796. They may have been used later, in 1797, 1798, or thereafter. The evidence of keeping earlier-dated obverses on hand is dramatically shown by the use of a 1795 half eagle die in 1798, when it was combined with the new Heraldic Eagle design (see $5 section of the present work). The same guesswork or, better, estimation, is found throughout Walter Breen’s texts and has been adapted without question into many popular references including A Guide Book of United States Coins. It is likely that more accurate numbers could be obtained with a mod¬ ern restudy of the issues. In all instances, the calendar year mintage figures (never mind the separation of these figures into estimated quantities for different varieties) for early gold coins must be taken with a large grain of salt. They are interesting to contemplate, but do not necessarily represent the number of coins struck bearing that particular year date. During the years 1796-1808, the Mint concentrated on the economy of using dies until they cracked or were otherwise rendered useless. The inquiries of future generations of numismatists, yet unborn, were not even considered. Collecting Considerations The number of specimens surviving of the 1796 No-Stars quarter eagle has been subject to many guesses, ranging from as low as a dozen or so to over the 100 mark. Irrespective of which estimate you choose, the 1796 quarter eagle is famous as one of the most elusive and one of the most sought-after early American gold coins. Most extant specimens are in grades from Very Fine to Extremely Fine, although a few higher condition examples exist. One of the most important presentations of this issue was in Stack’s catalogue of the John Whitney Walter Collection, 1999, which featured specimens a dedicated numismatist with an ample budget had acquired and studied over a long period of years. An appendix to the catalogue lists several hundred sale appearances for the 1796 No-Stars quarter eagle over a long period of years. Curiously, the starless obverse field and the cameo-like effect it gave to the portrait of Miss Liberty resulted in an inordinate number of these pieces being used as jewelry. Thus, today it is not unusual to find examples that once had loops attached to the edge or which have been burnished. Complicating the ease of evaluating and comparing listings of quarter eagles of this design is the general practice to grade these pieces liberally, and also the high rate of resubmissions to grading services. Under the latter procedure, a half dozen listings in population reports might represent only one specific coin. The aspect of the unknown has always piqued the imagination of numismatists. With the 1796 No-Stars quarter eagle—more than for any other design type in the denomination—there are unanswered questions as to how many exist and how the grades of extant pieces are distributed. Nearly all specimens show some Mint-caused planchet adjustment marks in the form of grooves or file marks, these being particularly evident along the border, but sometimes on the portrait of Miss Liberty and among the reverse motifs. It was not known until recent decades that the 1796 No Obverse Stars quarter eagle was mated with two different reverses, these being designated below as Reverse AA (recently discovered, and exceedingly rare) and Re¬ verse AB (the usually seen reverse). Estimates of Rarity Estimated population (Mint State): 5 to 8. The dividing line between a truly Mint State 1796 No-Stars quarter eagle and one that is AU is fuzzy in the literature. A number of high-grade coins that have been called Mint State (or, years ago, the equivalent Uncirculated) seem to be no better than AU-55 or AU-58 today. Conversely, some that have been called AU before are now graded Mint State. Thus, the literature is of little help. High-grade coins are very attractive and usually are prooflike. A perusal of the citations below will reveal that many high-grade offerings have been made over the years. How many of these are for different coins is not known. Mint State coins are sufficiently rare that it may be the case that no ex¬ amples were specially saved at the time of issue. Walter Breen has written of special strikings (Encyclopedia, 1988): “Real presentation strikings have bril¬ liant prooflike surfaces and are better struck....” However, no documenta¬ tion for the presentation of such pieces has come to light, and this matter of distribution seems to be conjectural. Certain 1796-dated coins in various se¬ ries are highly prooflike (the silver quarter dollar being particularly notable in this regard), but this seems to have been the style used for many coins made for general circulation this year. Estimated population (circulated grades): 80 to 110. The number of dif¬ ferent specimens known has been the subject of widely varying estimates. The writer suggests perhaps 80 to 110, although David Akers’ 1975 estimate of “between 30 and 40” must certainly be noticed. Estimates that a dozen, or 15, or 20 pieces constitute the entire population are disregarded today. A survey of early gold coins appearing in Bowers and Merena auctions for the period from 1972 through summer 1999 yielded 24 citations the 1796 No- Stars quarter eagle (including duplicate appearances of some coins), and during the same period dozens of others were sold by other auction firms as well as by direct sales. In the years since the 1860s there have been hundreds of auction appearances, with many coins appearing multiple times in differ¬ ent sales, with a listing by date given in an appendix to the catalogue of the John Whitney Walter Collection (Stack's, 1999). In addition to the auction data—constituting the most visible appearances—many specimens of this and other gold coins have been bought and sold privately. Sometimes it is worth¬ while to remember that in recent decades there have been hundreds if not thousands of professional numismatists handling gold coins, but only a small percentage of these dealers have conducted auctions. Per contra, most major collections have been sold via the auction route. Thus, the chances are excellent that over a period of time a given specimen of a rarity will ap¬ pear one or more times in the auction forum. Among surviving circulated 1796 No-Stars quarter eagles, VF and EF specimens are the norm, but there are at least 15 that are AU, usually with prooflike surfaces; some of these were probably called EF years ago. Among AU specimens the presently offered Bass coin is one of the nicest we have ever handled. Grading is a moving target in many areas of numismat¬ ics, and the 1796 No-Stars quarter eagle is a study in this regard. A survey of “name” auction sales over a long period of years reveals that there are very few exceptions to the VF and EF rule. It seems evident that in the context of 1796 No-Stars quarter eagles, an AU coin is very special, and even the most advanced collector would be proud to own one. Regarding Mint State coins, these are extreme rarities, as noted above. Certain “Mint State” coins in today’s collecting arena were graded AU earlier. Pieces that have been polished and/or mounted for use as jewelry exist, perhaps to the extent of a dozen or more coins in addition to the 80-110 es¬ timate given above. These have value as “fillers.” Some pieces have been cleverly restored to eliminate most traces of mounting. Purchased from Abner Kreisberg, April 1973.