United States 1879-CC 20 dollars
This specimen was lot 1757 in Jean Elsen sale 164 (Brussels, March 2026), where it sold for €9,000 (about US$12,530 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ÉTATS-UNIS, AV 20 dollars, 1879 CC, Carson City. Rare. Nettoyé. Très Beau. (United States gold twenty dollars of 1879, Carson City mint. Rare, cleaned, Very Fine.)"
After the Civil War, paper currency began to displace coins for large transactions and gold coins spent most of their lives in vaults. As a result, survivors may be bagmarked but rarely come heavily worn. Issues of the Carson City mint are the exception as they circulated extensively.
Recorded mintage: 10,708.
Specification: 33.43 g, 0.900 fine gold, 34 mm diameter, reeded edge.
Catalog reference: KM 74.3, Fr-179.
- 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]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 164: Monnaies du duché de Brabant et du royaume de Belgique, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2026.
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