1850 $5 Moffat & Co. MS(PCGS#10243)

February 2026 Showcase Auction - The James A. Stack, Sr. Collection Part II

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

23050

Grade

AU58+

Price

33,600

Lot Description

Reverse aligned 90 degrees clockwise from proper coin turn. A triumph of rich originality, a beautiful and well preserved coin that looks like it was just plucked from a miner's pocket. Charming green-tinted gold shows graceful highlights of pale violet and orange-rose on both sides, which are bathed in abundant mint frost with spectacular eye appeal. A light rust stain is noted at star 7 atop the obverse, a less noticeable area of similar toning is seen at the portrait's nose, and a bit of old encrustation remains at the last two date digits and between star 11 and the denticles. A natural low spot hides in the field above star 1, and a couple of tiny marks are seen on the portrait's jawline. Otherwise, this piece is about as choice as a coin can be and not be Mint State. The reverse is particularly pristine, but both sides are lovely. This piece is clearly rare so fine, desirable to collectors, etc., but its most notable characteristic may be the importance of surfaces as original as these. This coin could be a great lesson in originality and what territorial coins should look like for the great majority of modern specialists who have simply never encountered a coin that looks like this before.<p><p><p>Last sold in Thomas Elder's October 1921 sale, this coin came from a consignment entitled "The Property of Mrs. Theodore S. Hawley, Los Angeles, Calif." Mr. Hawley was a high profile resident of Santa Barbara, whose 1920 marriage was described as a union of "two of the prominent and pioneer families of Santa Barbara." His wife, the former Ida Palache, was a well regarded photographer. One wonders if the coins were sent off to auction to help defray wedding expenses. Mrs. Hawley's father Gilbert Palache arrived in San Francisco in the early 1850s. His profession, as listed in the 1870 census, was auctioneer. The Hawley consignment included just four California private gold coins: an 1850 Baldwin & Co. $5, two 1849 Moffat $5s, and this 1850 Moffat $5. Elder described it as "Perfect die. Almost uncirculated. The best example we have seen, bold impression. Very rare thus." <p><p>We agree with Elder on all points, though a few higher graded 1850 Moffat $5s have crossed our desks. It's been awhile, however, as the last Mint State graded coin (an NGC MS-61) appeared in one of our sales in February 2014. The choice example from the Archangel Collection sale of November 2006, graded MS-63 (NGC), might be the best of these we've sold in the last 20 years. This one is not far behind.