| Description: |
A simply extraordinary coin, described by David Akers as "about the most obvious
Proof Bust Half Dollar from the 1820s that one will ever see." The devices are richly
frosted and show full cameo contrast with deeply mirrored fields. The surfaces are
brilliant silver gray with just a trace of peripheral toning among the reverse legends,
outside the stars, and above Liberty's head. A thin stripe of toning is linear and
diagonal from 1:00 to 8:00, suggesting a ribbon laying across the coin in a presentation
box or something of the like; the 1827 Proof O-107 illustrated in the Breen Proof
Encyclopedia shows a very similar line of toning on the reverse. The relief of the devices
is nearly shelf-like, the lettering is crisp, and the denticles are lengthened in a way
that suggests one extremely tight squeeze of the screw press rather than multiple
individual strikes, though a lack of obvious doubling does not necessarily mean that the
coin was not stuck with multiple ideally centered strokes. There is not a single detail
that was engraved in the die that is not present in relief on this coin. The strike is not
perfectly centered, with shorter denticles under the olive leaves than above OF. The gem
designation is well founded, with only a few spare hairlines noted on the perfectly
reflective surfaces, a spot left of star 13, and some pinpoint spots on Liberty's cheek. A
tiny constellation of microscopic planchet chips are noted, as struck, under UR of
PLURIBUS.
Proof Bust half dollars are among the most beautiful collectible delicacies of
the First U.S. Mint. By 1826, the craft of coining had been well rehearsed and the staff
(notably including Adam Eckfeldt, a brilliant mechanic who would retire from the Mint in
1839) could create a product of great majesty when they needed to. Steam coinage was still
a decade in the future for the U.S. Mint, and even after the introduction of steam a screw
press was used to produce dies, medals, and "master coins." While we do not know
the circumstances behind the production of Proof coins in 1826, we know that very few were
produced and even fewer survive. It appears that only three 1826 half dollars are known to
exist in Proof format with the possibility of one or two others. Among those noted by
Breen, one was described as "one-sided," a phenomenon where one side of the coin
(usually the obverse) shows Proof surfaces while the other is not similarly prepared, and
another was called weakly struck and is generally thought of as merely prooflike. The only
other Proof from these dies, Overton-101, is the 1997 ANA specimen, called Proof-63 by
PCGS at the time and now resident in a PCGS Proof-64 holder. This is one is finer today,
and it will probably be finer for quite some time, though the other specimen's grade may
change again—such is the value of a long pedigree chain, enabling a studious numismatist
to see changes in things such as grade and toning over time. A single other specimen is
known from the Overton-102 dies, the former Ruby coin.
When the Pittman Collection was
brought to market by David Akers, a group of early Proof coins that had been off the
market for decades (exactly 50 years, in the case of this coin) became available to a new
generation of advanced collectors. A few years later, most of these very special coins
have found homes in long-standing private cabinets and the appearance on the market of an
incredible rarity such as this is a scarce opportunity. Pittman was attracted to the
majesty, rarity, and the value of Proof coins—in 1826, an MS-65 half dollar was still
just a half dollar, but even then a Proof coin such as this was special. The enduring
attraction of Proof coins is easily appreciated when holding, studying, and ultimately
owning a coin of this calibre.NGC Census: 1; none finer. This is the only Proof 1826 half
dollar certified by NGC. PCGS has offered the Proof designation three times, with the
single Proof-63 that was certified by that firm at the time of the 1998 Pittman sale now
not listed in favor of two Proof-62 coins and a single Proof-64. The Proof-64 is
presumably the other O-101, the former Proof-63 from the 1997 ANA Sale. The other entries
may reflect a resubmission of the unique Gilhousen-Ruby O-102 Proof or certification of a
coin not previously recognized as a Proof. Identification of Proofs from this period can
be a tricky and controversial business, though the present specimen leaves no doubts as
the above Akers quote would indicate.From S.H. and Henry Chapman's sale of the Thomas
Cleneay Collection, December 1890, Lot 1162; later in the Col. E.H.R. Green Collection;
Numismatic Gallery's 1946 ANA Sale of the Adolph Friedman Collection of Half Dollars,
August 1946, Lot 786; Kreisberg-Schulman's sale of the Gustav Lichtenfels Collection,
February 1961, Lot 2763; David Akers Numismatics' sale of the John Jay Pittman Collection,
Part II, May 1998, Lot 1485. This coin may be the one offered in W. Elliot Woodward's 1864
McCoy sale, as Cleneay was an active collector in this era. |
