1848 $1 MS(PCGS#6935)

Spring 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

競売業者

Stack's Bowers

ロット番号

3061

グレード

MS63

価格

20,400

ロット詳細

OC Die State a/a. An exceptional circulation strike 1848 dollar that ranks solidly in the Condition Census for this low mintage, key date 1840s Liberty Seated issue. Both sides are dressed in smoky golden-gray patina with underlying iridescence in golden-apricot, pale pink and powder blue. The strike is typical for the issue with softness noted around much of the obverse periphery and at the high points of Liberty's portrait and the eagle. Fully lustrous, frosty and with semi-reflective tendencies in the fields, there is no wear to either side of this undeniably Mint State example. Wispy handling marks do little more than confirm the MS-63 assessment from PCGS, although a light scuff in the reverse field before the eagle's beak also serves as a useful identifier for provenance purposes.<p>The production run of just 15,000 pieces makes the 1848 the lowest mintage Liberty Seated dollar issue from the 1840s. The limited supply of domestically mined silver certainly played a part in the Philadelphia Mint's trifling issue of dollars throughout that decade, but the real culprit is the popularity and abundance of the Mexican 8 reales and its Spanish-American predecessor. As long as those coins were preferred in global commerce, and as long as they were readily obtainable for large transactions, merchants in the United States had little reason to deposit bullion with Uncle Sam and request the domestically authorized alternative.<p>Delivered just before the onset of the California Gold Rush, the 1848 (along with the 1849, 1850 and 1850-O) suffered a higher rate of attrition through export to and melting in England as the price of silver rose relative to gold on the world market. When combined with the limited mintage, it is easy to understand both the scarcity and desirability of the 1848 in numismatic circles. Even well worn survivors rarely remain on the open market for long.<p>Of course, the Select Uncirculated example offered here is in another category entirely. It is a coin whose superior surfaces point to immediate and continuous preservation as a keepsake or collectible upon leaving the Mint. It is a little known fact that, while the rare early Proofs in the Liberty Seated dollar series were made to order for the small numismatic community in the Northeast, the Philadelphia Mint also used its $1 million bullion fund during that era to begin limited coinage each year in advance of bullion deposits. These advance strikings were made on government account and, while most were eventually paid out to bullion depositors for use in commerce, limited numbers went to satisfy public demand for keepsakes and gifts. While we have no way of knowing the circumstances under which this coin left the Mint, it is a strong candidate for inclusion among those specially distributed and cared for circulation strike silver dollars of the 1840s. Regardless, it is an important survivor of a key pre-1850 Liberty Seated issue, and one that is eagerly awaiting inclusion in another world-class cabinet.