United States 1865 20 dollars

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Sincona sale 90, lot 2105

This specimen was lot 2105 in Sincona sale 90 (Zürich, May 2024), where it sold for 6,000 CHF (about US$7,929 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted, "USA, 20 Dollars 1865, Philadelphia. Liberty head type. PCGS MS61." The immense quantities of gold coming from California during the Gold Rush prompted Congress to approve the issue of a new coin, the twenty dollar gold piece. One example, probably a pattern, exists of the 1849 but substantial quantities were made at Philadelphia and New Orleans, starting in 1850. A new branch mint was constructed at San Francisco in 1854 and it contributed as well. Minting ceased in New Orleans with the start of the Civil War but Philadelphia and San Francisco continued until 1866, when the reverse was modified to add "IN GOD WE TRUST". Those made after the Civil War circulated little, being displaced by paper currency, and many were exported to Europe or South America to back currency there. The salvage of the SS Central America added thousands of uncirculated 1856-S and 1857-S $20's to the collector marketplace.

Recorded mintage: 351,200, a scarce date.

Specification: 516 grains (33.436 grams), 1 1/3" (34 millimeters) diameter, 90% gold, silver not over 5%, rest copper; reeded edge.

Catalog reference: KM 74.1, Fr-169.

Source:

  • Alexander, David T., Coin World Comprehensive Catalog & Encyclopedia of United States Coins, Sidney, OH: Amos Press, 1995.
  • Breen, Walter H., Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of U. S. and Colonial Coins, New York: Doubleday, 1987.
  • Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
  • Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
  • Yeoman, R. S., and Kenneth Bressett (ed.), A Guide Book of United States Coins, 65th Ed., Atlanta, GA: Whitman Publishing, 2011.
  • [1]Richter, Jürg, SINCONA Auction 90, Münzen und Medaillen der Welt, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2024.

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