A rare 1861 Confederate T-27 $10 note will be featured in the Stack’s Bowers Galleries Official Auction of the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Spring Expo March 26-29. T-27s are among the great Confederate type notes that make up the “Big Six” of a complete Confederate type set; meaning the six rarest type notes including the Montgomery’s (T-1 through T-4), T-27 and its sheet mate T-35.
The T-27 was a lower quality note produced by Hoyer & Ludwig of Richmond, Virginia in late 1861. According to Collecting Confederate Paper Money by Pierre Fricke, 8,576 of these notes were issued. The design is uniface and features Liberty seated with an eagle and shield at upper left. Liberty is holding a staff with a Liberty cap at the top. This symbol was used extensively on early United States coinage and represents freedom and the pursuit of liberty. A steam train is found inside a frame at right. These notes were fundable in Confederate States stocks bearing 8% interest and payable six months after a treaty of peace between the Confederate States and the United States. T-27s were sheet mates to T-35s. The T-27 was printed for just a short time before being replaced by the similarly designed T-28. Approximately 113 T-27s are known today indicating a survival rate of just 1.28%.
There are two major plate or “plen” varieties for the T-27. The PF-1 variety comes from the Ab plate while the PF-2 variety comes from plates A9 to A16. PF-2 notes are considerably rarer with just 34 examples known.
The example to be offered in our March auction is a PF-2 variety from plate A11, one of just five known for that plate. The note, serial number 5017, has been graded Very Fine 25 Apparent by PCGS with mention of cancellations being rebuilt and design elements redrawn. The restoration is found on two hole cancellations at top left and at center. Both areas were skillfully executed and the note faces up quite well.
The consignment deadline for the March Baltimore auction is February 2. To consign contact one of our Stack’s Bowers Galleries representatives today at 1-800-458-4646.
