Stack’s
Bowers Galleries is delighted to present an important highlight of our August
2017 ANA World’s Fair of Money auction in Denver, Colorado — the incredible
Lord St. Oswald-Norweb 1794 Flowing Hair silver dollar. This MS-64 (PCGS)
example was last offered at public auction in the firm’s sale of the Norweb
Collection in November 1988.
This
incredible specimen has a fascinating but familiar story coming just two years
after the sale of its sibling, the MS-66+ (PCGS) Lord St. Oswald-Ostheimer
example, in our D. Brent Pogue Collection, Part II sale. In that May 2015
auction, the Pogue counterpart realized an astounding $4,993,750, including the
buyer’s premium.
These two 1794 silver dollars remained
together for the first 170 years of their existence, until they were offered as
part of the Lord St. Oswald cabinet by Christie’s in 1964. The pair had been
obtained by English gentleman farmer William Strickland on his tour of the
young United States from September 20, 1794 to July 29, 1795. During his visit,
Strickland journeyed throughout New England and the Mid-Atlantic, even meeting
with Thomas Jefferson at Monticello and with then-President George Washington
at Mt. Vernon. The two 1794 silver
dollars were among a diverse group of 84 federal and pre-federal coins
presumably gathered during his 10 months in America. Centuries later, those two
souvenirs would immortalize the legacy of William Strickland and his
descendants through the Lord St. Oswald provenance.
The
near-Gem Lord St. Oswald-Norweb specimen is among the finest survivors of
America’s first silver dollar coinage and is one of the great treasures of U.S.
numismatics. The surfaces are impeccably preserved and lustrous, with just
gentle traces of planchet adjustment at the obverse border. The coin exhibits
strong peripheral definition for the issue, with considerable pronouncement to
the left obverse stars and corresponding legend on the reverse. Ranked as
fourth finest in the Condition Census and third finest among Mint State
examples seen by PCGS, this is a significant world-class rarity.
Over
the years, our firm has handled the very finest 1794 dollars extant, including
having sold every known Mint State example at least once over the past three
decades. The Specimen-66 (PCGS) Carter-Cardinal-Morelan 1794 silver dollar,
sold by us in January 2013, set the record for the highest auction price
realized for any coin at over $10 million. We are pleased to once again have
the opportunity to present the Lord St. Oswald-Norweb specimen in their auction
of the ANA World’s Fair of Money this August in Denver, Colorado. Visit www.StacksBowers.com or call 1-800-458-4646 for more details or to speak
with a consignment director about consigning alongside this monumental offering.
