1854 $1 PR(PCGS#6997)

The March 2011 Baltimore Auction

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

3268

等级

PR64

价格

114,889

详细说明

1854 Seated Liberty Silver Dollar. Proof-64 (NGC). An elusive and seldom-offered date in the proof Seated Liberty Dollar series, the 1854 was produced in an era before the United States Mint started marketing proof coins to contemporary collectors. It is likely, therefore, that only a limited number of proof Silver Dollars were prepared in 1854, and then again only for inclusion in sets specially commissioned by the federal government or for distribution to a small number of individuals with close ties to Mint personnel. The exact mintage of this issue will never be known, however, as the Mint did not begin to record proof production figures for Silver Dollars until 1859.<br /> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Estimating the number of proof 1854 Seated Dollars extant is also problematic as some specimens are impounded in museum collections or are&nbsp;(semi-) permanently "off the market" because they are in tightly held private collections. What this cataloger can say with some&nbsp;certainty is that only about nine <em>different </em>examples of this proof issue have been offered through auction since the turn of the 21st century. Allowing for the aforementioned museum collection and private collection pieces, a fair estimate on the number of proof 1854 Seated Dollars extant would be in the neighborhood of only 20 or so coins.<br /> &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;This is a deeply toned piece, the obverse awash in olive-copper patina and the reverse in even bolder lavender-charcoal toning. More vivid undertones are evident at direct angles, especially on the obverse where antique-gold and pale-rose colors can be seen as the coin dips into a light. Razor-sharp devices, broad, squared-off borders and appreciable reflectivity in the fields confirm the coin's status as a proof -- an attribution that is solidified by the below-listed diagnostics of the obverse and reverse dies. Definitely an important find for the advanced Seated Dollar collector or early proof specialist.<br /> &nbsp;&