1901 $1 MS(PCGS#7272)

Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

3140

Grade

MS66

Price

720,000

Lot Description

This unique premium Gem 1901 in certified MS-66 features among the most significant Morgan dollars that we have ever had the privilege of bringing to auction. We note a hint of pale golden iridescence to otherwise brilliant surfaces. Luster is strong and satiny, the coin far superior in this category to the typical Uncirculated survivor with subdued, lackluster surfaces. The vast majority of Mint State 1901 dollars are also heavily abraded with poor striking detail; the present example excels in these areas, as well. The strike is sharp throughout, even at the centers at the hair curls over Liberty's ear and the eagle's breast, and the surfaces are refreshingly smooth with no distracting or otherwise grade-limiting marks. With its technical superiority and strong visual appeal, this coin is impossible to improve upon for the issue.<p>Given that nearly seven million circulation strike silver dollars were produced at the Philadelphia Mint in 1901, it would be reasonable to think that it would be one of the most common Morgan dollars around. This is certainly the case in lower circulated grades, where the 1901 is plentiful. Clearly, many were placed into circulation beginning at or near the time of striking. In About Uncirculated the 1901 is also readily obtainable, but it trades at a premium at that level, due to the scarcity and key date status of this issue in Mint State.<p>Indeed, the 1901 is the rarest Philadelphia Mint Morgan silver dollar in Mint State. It is thought that whatever bags were kept from circulation by the Treasury Department were melted as a result of the Pittman Act of 1918. Q. David Bowers (1993) is not aware of any releases from government holdings during the 1940s, 1950s or 1960s. Auction records from the early to mid 20th century are also few and far between for Mint State examples, and Bowers suggests that many dealer listings for such pieces during the 1950s and 1960s were probably for coins that would be graded About Uncirculated by today's standards. This issue in scarce and eagerly sought in properly graded MS-60 to MS-63 and rare in MS-64. Gem MS-65 and MS-66 specimens are among the great condition rarities in the Morgan dollar series; they are so rare, in fact, that collectors of high grade silver dollars usually opt for a Gem Proof to represent this date in their collections.<p>As previously related, the Illinois Set coin offered here is the single finest-certified Gem Mint State 1901 Morgan dollar. It edges out two grading events in PCGS MS-65 for this distinction, only one of which has appeared at auction in the modern market: the Wayne Miller-Larry H. Miller specimen in our November 2020 sale of the latter collection. Clearly this could be a once in a lifetime bidding opportunity for advanced Morgan dollar enthusiasts. It is certainly an exceedingly rare opportunity to acquire a legendary condition rarity, a coin with technical and aesthetic merits possessed by precious few 1901 Morgan dollars.