1877-S $20 MS(PCGS#8984)

February 2025 Showcase Auction - U.S. Coins

Commissaire-priseur

Stack's Bowers

Numéro du lot

2196

Grade

MS63

Prix

9 600

Description du lot

This is an outstanding double eagle irrespective of type or issue. Both sides are fully struck and bathed in frosty rose-orange luster. Exceptionally smooth for this conditionally challenging issue, and worthy of a premium bid, as such. The 1877-S double eagle registered a mintage of 1,735,000 pieces, down some 138,000 coins from the previous year. Some portion of the mintage made it into overseas banking transactions, a familiar scenario -- and a blessing to later generations of numismatists. Thanks to repatriations from foreign bank hoards, in fact, our estimate for Mint State survivors is a rather generous 1,500 to 2,500 coins. Most of these, however, hover around the MS-60 and MS-61 grade levels. As a solidly graded and upper end MS-63, this Choice offering from the Fairmont Collection represents the finest realistically obtainable for the issue as far as most of today's double eagle specialists are concerned.