1856-S $5 MS(PCGS#8270)

Spring 2022 U.S. Coins Auction

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

5083

Grade

MS62

Price

33,600

Lot Description

Extraordinary Mint State 1856-S Half Eagle Tied for Highest Graded Example Verified by CAC 1856-S Liberty Head Half Eagle. MS-62 (PCGS). CAC. Beautiful golden-rose surfaces with full luster in a soft satin texture. Striking detail is razor sharp in virtually all areas, and the in hand appearance is uncommonly smooth for both the issue and the assigned grade. A high Condition Census offering from the earliest days of San Francisco Mint coinage. Due to distrust of paper money, gold coins were the workhorse medium of exchange in the Old West during the immediate pre-Civil War era, as well as during the following decades through the closing of the frontier in 1890. The entirety of the 105,100 mintage of 1856-S half eagles immediately entered circulation with little notice and went to work helping to make a dent in the enormous demand for lower denomination gold coins. And stay there they did -- the half eagle denomination had long been popular in commerce throughout the United States and especially so in California. In all degrees of preservation, the issue is notably scarce: PCGS CoinFactsestimates that 225 examples exist in all grades. Of those, the typically offered grades are VF to low end AU. For the Western Americana specialist, here is an extraordinary opportunity to add a remarkable Mint State survivor of a historic and underappreciated issue. Provenance: From the Fairmont Collection-Hendricks Set. PCGS Population: 5; with a single MS-64 finer. CAC Population: 2; 0. PCGS# 8270. NGC ID: 25UZ. Click here for certification details from PCGS. Click here to see Coins in Motion.[“Coins]