Stack’s Bowers Galleries is pleased to be featuring one of the finer-known prooflike 1795 $5 half eagles in Rarities Night of our August 2024 Global Showcase Auction, a beautiful example of the BD-3 die marriage. Certified MS-63 PL by NGC, lot 3311 offers one of just seven of its date with the PL designation in that service’s Census. Only two grading events for finer 1795 half eagles with the PL designation and two other MS-63 PLs are reported by NGC.
1795 was the first year of the $5 denomination, though it had been authorized, along with the Mint itself, in 1792. High personal surety bond requirements for its officers kept the new Mint from producing gold coins in its first years of operation, but by 1795 the bond requirement had been lowered and enough gold bullion had been purchased for the nation’s first gold coins to be produced. The 744 half eagles, delivered on July 31, 1795, inaugurated the United States’ gold coinage.
Staff at the early U.S. Mint often used dies for as long as possible, regardless of the date, creating ambiguity about the exact mintage for any given date. Eight obverse and nine reverse dies were used to strike 1795 half eagles, resulting in 12 known die marriages. The BD-3 is the most common of those 12 known marriages, with experts estimating 2,000 to 3,000 struck with the pair, a large part of the 8,707 reported struck (though some believe as many as 12,106 half eagles dated 1795 may have been produced). 19th century melting claimed a large portion of this population and the number of survivors is estimated to be in the low hundreds.
The date/denomination’s status as the first U.S. gold coin produced has attracted collector attention over the years, beginning in the mid-19th century. The BD-3 represents the most accessible of the 1795 half eagle die marriages. The confluence of these qualities makes the listed example an extremely desirable piece that would make a lovely addition to an advanced gold cabinet.
Our cataloger states: “Bathed in a warm honey-orange color, the fields shimmer with strong reflectivity that explains the rare (for the type) and desirable PL designation from NGC. The devices are softly frosted in finish and, when contrasted with the fields, provide an appreciable cameo effect. Unlike many half eagles of the period, the surfaces are blissfully free of sizable or otherwise singularly distracting marks, and there is also no sign of Mint-made adjustment. The striking detail is crisper than what is typically seen with early half eagles, with just a hint of softness on the eagle’s neck, breast, and left leg feathers. An impressively well defined and considerably attractive example that is sure to please even the most discerning numismatist. BD Die State c/b.”
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