1798 $1 BB-115 MS(PCGS#40032)

Spring 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

4329

Grade

XF45

Price

6,600

Lot Description

BB Die State IV. Warmly patinated in blended pewter and olive-gray with iridescent undertones. Softness of strike to the end of Liberty's bust and the opposing area on the reverse is typical of the variety, although this piece is better defined than most (see, among others, the 2013 Bowers plate coin), and many areas retain considerable sharpness to the design elements. Bowers-Borckardt 115 is one of the scarcer die marriages of the 1798 Heraldic Eagle silver dollar. It features a workhorse obverse that was also used to strike examples of the BB-113, BB-114, BB-116, BB-117, BB-118 and BB-119 varieties. On this obverse, the digit 8 is much too high, out of position, and leaning to the right. The reverse of BB-115 is in its only use. It was first described by M.H. Bolender in 1950, having been unknown to John W. Haseltine when he wrote his <em>Type-Table</em> in 1881. Q. David Bowers estimates that only 175 to 300 examples are known in all grades, his list of Notable Specimens comprised solely of EF and AU coins. This Choice Extremely Fine survivor is clearly among the finer certified, and it is a coin that deserves serious consideration from advanced early dollar variety collectors.