Cert #8551 21174554

Coin Number 5

Here is a completely respectable specimen of this tough die pairing. Only 35-45 pieces are known and this one is well near the top of that small group. The surfaces show the usual light handling marks, with a minor scrape in the field behind Liberty’s head, extending from roughly stars four to six. The color is a blend of soft yellow gold with traces of coppery accents. Several of the obverse stars show points that are quite short, this from the effects of an over zealous lapping of the die, perhaps to remove thin die cracks or clashing traces, the lapping filed down the fields of the die and also reduced the depth of the devices–in this case the length of the star points. Quickly identifiable by the irregular die lump past OF where a bubble in the die steel collapsed with coinage, creating a raised lump on the coins struck with this reverse die. The lump is present on all known examples struck from this reverse die, so it likely happened early in the coinage of Eagles. A simply delightful example of this die marriage.