1854-S $20 MS(PCGS#8913)

Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Commissaire-priseur

Stack's Bowers

Numéro du lot

3367

Grade

MS62

Prix

40 800

Description du lot

Outstanding lustrous surfaces are bathed in mint frost. This is a well struck coin with most design elements fully rendered and is very well preserved for both the issue and the assigned grade. Not only are the surfaces fully Mint State, but they are largely free of individually distracting marks; a graze in the left obverse field explains the MS-62 grade from PCGS and is mentioned here for accuracy. Rich orange-gold, pinkish-rose and deep olive colors overlay both sides and deliver outstanding visual appeal that is sure to impress.<p>After several years of political wrangling, the mint in San Francisco was finally opened for business in March 1854. The mint was located in the offices of highly regarded private coiners Moffat & Company at 608-610 Commercial Street until 1874, when it was replaced by a larger facility better suited for mass production. The first coins struck in 1854 were the five main gold denominations: gold dollar, quarter eagle, half eagle, eagle, and the double eagle. A total of 141,468 $20 gold pieces were struck that first year, all of which were promptly absorbed into the regional economy and would remain there for years. Because of the coins' heavy use in a cash-starved West, this is a comparatively scarce issue that is almost always found in low grades. It was not until a group of 1854-S double eagles were found on the wreck of the <em>Yankee Blade</em> that any examples in higher grades became available. Even so, this issue is scarce in Mint State with Q. David Bowers accounting for only 200 to 300 Uncirculated examples when he wrote his <em>Guide Book of Double Eagle Gold Coins</em> in 2004. Nearly Choice examples such as this are particularly desirable among advanced collectors given that the issue is seldom encountered in finer certified grades.