1820 $5 Curl Base 2, Large Letters MS(PCGS#8127)

1820 $5 Curl Base 2, Large Letters MS (PCGS#8127)

Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Description du lot: BD Die State a/b. Here is a highly desirable early half eagle rarity with strong eye appeal and numismatic significance. Handsome surfaces display an ideal combination of soft satiny luster and rich orange-honey color. There are only a very few of the most minor contact marks, none sizeable and hardly any visible to the unaided eye. A bit more vibrancy to the luster would probably have propelled this endearing piece into the near-Gem category. It is a visually appealing, technically superior coin capable of amazing the most jaded of numismatists.<p>Nine die marriages of 1820 half eagles are known, of which three are Curved-Base 2 obverse, Large Letters reverse combinations. All three of these are rare. BD-5 is perhaps the most often encountered, with a population estimated at 20 to 25 pieces. BD-7 appears to have a population of six coins. BD-9 may be the rarest of the varieties, with a population estimated in the Bass-Dannreuther book at four to six coins. Of course, all Capped Head Left half eagles are significant numismatic rarities due to the wholesale destruction of these coins through melting during the 1820s and early 1830s. The opportunity to acquire this Choice Mint State 1820 BD-5 is a fleeting one that deserves an aggressive bidding strategy.