Final Carson City Double Eagle

With each new purchase for the Grandview Collection in 2013, I plan to describe the coin and relevant background information with a journal post. Additional images of the coin and holder will also be provided in the journal. I may even post about interesting coins that have been in the collection for many years.

The last year that the Carson City mint produced coins for circulation was 1893, and thus coins from this year are very popular. The mintage of double eagles was only 18,402, however, unlike other dates, examples of mint state CC twenties are available, though virtually all are in grades MS63 and lower. Double eagles from 1893-CC, along with coins minted earlier in the decade, often show evidence of improper mixing of the alloy while preparing the planchets, which appears as orange or reddish spots or blotches on the coin's surfaces. This coloration can be distracting if the spots are dark or concentrated in a small area, however, in some cases the toning can be attractive, eg, the 93-CC, 92-CC and 90-CC examples in the Grandview collection.

The 1893-CC $20 in the Grandview collection displays lustrous yellow gold intermixed with subtle reddish coloration especially around the periphery. The surfaces have very few abrasions for the grade with the only noticeable marks on the chin.

This coin was previously in the Richard J. Chouinard Collection which was sold by Heritage Auctions in 2005. Richard Chouinard collected coins for more than 6 decades, starting near the end of the Depression. His collection was quite extensive, purchasing coins from many of the top dealers during the past fifty years including Abe Kosoff, Hans Schulman and Lester Merkin.

According to the Heritage press release (12/17/04) featuring the Chouinard collection, his greatest numismatic love was the Liberty Head Double Eagle. At first, the intrinsic gold content of the double eagle made this coin particularly appealing to him, but as he grew in the hobby, so did his appreciation for the coin's historic and aesthetic qualities. His collection contained numerous high grade coins from throughout the series, including the finest known 1891 $20 (NGC MS64 PL, ex Dallas Bank Collection) and the low mintage 1885 $20 (MS62 NGC). While these were the highlights and most valuable coins in the collection, he had many double eagles that were exceptional for the grade with excellent eye appeal. During the 2005 auctions featuring the Chouinard collection, many records were set for highest price realized within a grade. The two AU58 1893-CC twenties in the collection both realized $4,887.50, which was much higher than previous AU58 examples, and approximately the price level that MS61 examples were realizing at the time.

The 1877-S $20 in the Grandview collection was also from the Richard J. Chouinard Collection.

http://coins.www.collectors-society.com/registry/coins/SetListing.aspx?PeopleSetID=106968

A link to images of the 1893-CC double eagle from Grandview Collection are shown below.

http://coins.www.collectors-society.com/WCM/CoinView.aspx?PeopleSetCoinID=1486322