1878 $2.50, DCAM PR(PCGS#97904)

1878 $2.50, DCAM PR (PCGS#97904)

Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Lot Description: Nineteenth century Proof gold rarities continue to dazzle in Stack's Bowers Galleries' August 2025 Global Showcase Auction. The present offering is for the Pittman specimen of the Proof 1878 quarter eagle, a beautiful Gem that features crisp field to device contrast. The former areas are deeply mirrored in finish while the design elements are heavily frosted. Close inspection with a loupe reveals several fine lines in the fields - a (very) few are hairlines from old, light collector handling, but most are as made, and the validity of the Proof-65 numeric grade from PCGS should not be questioned. With a full strike and lovely golden-orange color, this is an outstanding example of a rare issue that will have no difficulty finding its way into an advanced gold cabinet.<p>The United States Mint employed two die pairings to deliver 20 Proof quarter eagles on February 8 or 9, 1878. The JD-2, represented here, is the slightly less rare of the two attributions and features the final use of John W. Dannreuther's 1868A reverse with a tiny spike on the right side of the second denticles to the left of the first letter S in STATES. Of course, this is a rare issue in an absolute sense with the author providing an estimate of just 12 to 14 specimens traceable today. The Pittman specimen is included in the 2018 Dannreuther census, one of only two Gems listed, and it is also tied for finest certified across PCGS and NGC.