Since the First San Francisco Mint concentrated on double eagle production, the 1859-S ten-dollar mintage was only 7,000 pieces. None were given numismatic consideration, and PCGS estimates only “40 to 60 known,” comparable with the 1870-CC. The median grade is XF, and only a single example (an MS60 NGC coin) has been certified as Mint…
A low-mintage issue with a production of only 43,517 coins, the 1859 double eagle is a scarce issue that emerges as an important condition rarity in Mint State grades. Only 13 pieces are NGC and PCGS-graded MS60 or finer, and none have been examined at either grading service above MS62 (3/23). The 1859 has the…
A Head Turner (or Turned) In the early 1850s, substantial California Gold Rush bullion was shipped via Panama to the Philadelphia Mint for coining. The advent of the San Francisco Mint, and its emergence from growing pains, slowed the flood of West Coast bullion to a trickle by 1859. That year, Philadelphia struck only 43,597…
A Rare O-mint $20 Lib The 1859-O is a rare New Orleans double eagle with a small 9,100-coin mintage. Perhaps only approximately 100 pieces are known in all grades, primarily distributed throughout the various XF and AU levels. Only two Mint State pieces are documented, both heavily bag-marked. The 1859-O shares its rarity with most…
A 59 20 in 55 The 1859 Liberty double eagle claims one of the lowest business-strike mintages of any Type One double eagle from the Philadelphia Mint, at a meager 43,597 pieces. The small business-strike production was largely ignored by contemporary numismatists and few high-quality pieces were preserved for posterity. The 1859 is an elusive…
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