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- 1861 $2 1/2 Clark, Gruber $2 1/2 Copper Dies Trial MS65 Brown NGC. K-9, High R.7. Ex: "Col." E.H.R. Green. Copper dies trials are known for all Clark, Gruber & Co. coin issues of 1860 and 1861. The 1861 quarter eagle dies trials are known in two varieties, one with a plain edge (K-9), and another with a reeded edge (K-9a). Both varieties were struck with the regular dies, but K-9 was struck without a collar. All the dies trials are very rare, and Heritage Auctions has only offered an example of the K-9 issue on two other occasions over the last two decades. The present coin is an attractive Gem example of the K-9 variety, with sharp definition on all interior design elements. The dentils are weak on the obverse, which was struck slightly off center to the right, leaving a wide space between the stars on the left and the border. The reverse is well-centered, with stronger dentilation on the right. An outline of original red shows around most of the devices, and the fields are blanketed in attractive shades of powder-blue and magenta. Census: 1 in 65 Brown, 1 finer (8/14). Ex: "Colonel" E.H.R. Green; Green Estate; Partnership of Eric P. Newman / B.G. Johnson d.b.a. St. Louis Stamp & Coin Co.; Eric P. Newman @ $7.50; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $7637.50. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1861 $10 Clark, Gruber & Co. Ten Dollar --Obverse Repaired -- NGC Details. Unc. K-7. R.4. Clark, Gruber & Co. was a well-respected and highly successful private mint established in Denver in 1860. The firm was active for only two years, but it produced gold coins of the standard denominations in great numbers during that time. The Treasury acquired the facility in April of 1863 and ran it as an assay office until 1906, when the Denver Mint was opened in a new building. Unlike the 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar gold piece, which featured an artist's conception of Pike's Peak on the obverse, the 1861 issue closely resembled the federal Liberty eagles in design. The coronet was inscribed PIKES PEAK instead of LIBERTY, and the reverse legend spelled out S CLARK GRUBER & CO. DENVER S TEN D., but the central design elements were obviously modeled after the government issue. This coin offers vivid orange and peach-gold surfaces that show signs of smoothing on the obverse. The well-detailed design elements show a touch of softness on the eagle's claws and stem, areas that are always incomplete on this issue. The overall presentation remains quite attractive. Ex: Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $7637.50. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1861 $10 Clark, Gruber & Co. Ten Dollar --Obverse Repaired -- NGC Details. Unc. K-7. R.4. Clark, Gruber & Co. was a well-respected and highly successful private mint established in Denver in 1860. The firm was active for only two years, but it produced gold coins of the standard denominations in great numbers during that time. The Treasury acquired the facility in April of 1863 and ran it as an assay office until 1906, when the Denver Mint was opened in a new building. Unlike the 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar gold piece, which featured an artist's conception of Pike's Peak on the obverse, the 1861 issue closely resembled the federal Liberty eagles in design. The coronet was inscribed PIKES PEAK instead of LIBERTY, and the reverse legend spelled out S CLARK GRUBER & CO. DENVER S TEN D., but the central design elements were obviously modeled after the government issue. This coin offers vivid orange and peach-gold surfaces that show signs of smoothing on the obverse. The well-detailed design elements show a touch of softness on the eagle's claws and stem, areas that are always incomplete on this issue. The overall presentation remains quite attractive. Ex: Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $7637.50. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1860 $10 Clark, Gruber & Co. Ten Dollar MS61 NGC. CAC. K-3, R.5. The firm of Clark, Gruber & Co. was formed as a banking partnership in Leavenworth, Kansas in March of 1859, shortly after the discovery of gold in the region that would later form the state of Colorado (neither Kansas nor Colorado had been admitted to the Union at the time). The principals were brothers Austin M. and Milton Edward Clark, and Emanuel Henry Gruber. The partnership benefited from its relative proximity to the gold fields, and purchased large amounts of gold dust from the miners, who found it easier and safer to transport their findings to Leavenworth than to the Philadelphia or San Francisco Mints. The evolution of the Kansas bank into a private mint was outlined by partner E.H. Gruber in an article in the Denver Times in 1904: {blockquote}"My firm was one of the heaviest purchasers of gold dust in the early days. And when we bought a large quantity of dust, we had to ship it to the states to have it coined into money. This was a rather expensive proceeding, as there were only stage coaches and pony express reaching this city in those days, and we had to pay 5 percent of the value of the dust as an insurance against loss in transit and another 5 percent expressage. Our dust was out of our hands for anywhere from three weeks to three months, and often times the cash we would have in transit would total nearly $300,000. This was considerable money to have and yet not be able to use for months at a time, so one day the idea struck me that the firm of Clark, Gruber & Co. bankers should also become coiners."{/blockquote} Consulting with his partner, Milton Clark (who was a lawyer as well as grocer and banker), Gruber determined that there was no legal prohibition against private coinage, as long as the coinage was of full weight and value. The firm purchased the necessary machinery and dies for coining in New York and Philadelphia, and purchased three lots in Denver City to build their new facility on by January of 1860. The firm opened its new mint, which was one of the sights of Denver, on July 10 1860, although the building was not completed until six days later, and the first coinage was accomplished on July 20. Clark, Gruber & Co. was scrupulously honest in its coinage operations and the firm established a reputation that was second-to-none in the private coinage industry. Their coins, issued in two and a half, five, ten, and twenty dollar denominations, were well-executed and widely received at par, as their intrinsic value was slightly in excess of the face value. The firm operated as a private mint during much of 1860 and 1861, issuing a total of $594,305 in gold coins during that time period. No 1862-dated coins are known, but the firm reportedly issued gold bars that year. Shortly afterward, the firm sold its operations to the United States government, as the precursor of the Denver Mint. The 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar pieces, like all the 1860 issues, were struck in unalloyed gold, causing the soft gold coins to wear down quickly. As a result, the issue is seldom encountered in Mint State grades today. A small amount of silver was added to the 1861 issues, to alleviate this problem. The obverse design of the ten and twenty dollar pieces featured an artist's conception of Pike's Peak that was not very realistic and was replaced by the more familiar head of Liberty the following year. A good description of the 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar piece is found in lot 829 of the Charles W. Cowell Collection (B. Max Mehl, 11/1911): {blockquote}"1860 $10 Obverse, view of Pike's Peak, below which is the word DENVER. Around border, PIKES PEAK GOLD. TEN D. Reverse, defiant eagle with U.S. shield on breast; an olive branch in his right talon and three arrows in left. Around CLARK, GRUBER & CO. 1860. Extremely fine. very rare."{/blockquote} Cowell was a collector from Denver and, according to Mehl, his collection was the first offering to include a complete set of Clark, Gruber & Co. issues. Recent sales of the ten dollar issue include the terrific MS63 NGC coin in lot 5460 of the Riverboat Collection (Heritage, 4/2014) that realized $111,625. The coin offered here is an attractive MS61 example with vivid orange-gold surfaces that show a scattering of minor contact marks on both sides, with traces of prooflike reflectivity in sheltered areas. The design elements are well-detailed, and a spidery die crack shows on the reverse, from the edge at 9:30 to the eagle's beak. We expect intense competition when this impressive Colorado rarity crosses the auction block. Census: 5 in 61, 10 finer (8/14). Ex: Eric Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $47000.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1860 $10 Clark, Gruber & Co. Ten Dollar MS61 NGC. CAC. K-3, R.5. The firm of Clark, Gruber & Co. was formed as a banking partnership in Leavenworth, Kansas in March of 1859, shortly after the discovery of gold in the region that would later form the state of Colorado (neither Kansas nor Colorado had been admitted to the Union at the time). The principals were brothers Austin M. and Milton Edward Clark, and Emanuel Henry Gruber. The partnership benefited from its relative proximity to the gold fields, and purchased large amounts of gold dust from the miners, who found it easier and safer to transport their findings to Leavenworth than to the Philadelphia or San Francisco Mints. The evolution of the Kansas bank into a private mint was outlined by partner E.H. Gruber in an article in the Denver Times in 1904: {blockquote}"My firm was one of the heaviest purchasers of gold dust in the early days. And when we bought a large quantity of dust, we had to ship it to the states to have it coined into money. This was a rather expensive proceeding, as there were only stage coaches and pony express reaching this city in those days, and we had to pay 5 percent of the value of the dust as an insurance against loss in transit and another 5 percent expressage. Our dust was out of our hands for anywhere from three weeks to three months, and often times the cash we would have in transit would total nearly $300,000. This was considerable money to have and yet not be able to use for months at a time, so one day the idea struck me that the firm of Clark, Gruber & Co. bankers should also become coiners."{/blockquote} Consulting with his partner, Milton Clark (who was a lawyer as well as grocer and banker), Gruber determined that there was no legal prohibition against private coinage, as long as the coinage was of full weight and value. The firm purchased the necessary machinery and dies for coining in New York and Philadelphia, and purchased three lots in Denver City to build their new facility on by January of 1860. The firm opened its new mint, which was one of the sights of Denver, on July 10 1860, although the building was not completed until six days later, and the first coinage was accomplished on July 20. Clark, Gruber & Co. was scrupulously honest in its coinage operations and the firm established a reputation that was second-to-none in the private coinage industry. Their coins, issued in two and a half, five, ten, and twenty dollar denominations, were well-executed and widely received at par, as their intrinsic value was slightly in excess of the face value. The firm operated as a private mint during much of 1860 and 1861, issuing a total of $594,305 in gold coins during that time period. No 1862-dated coins are known, but the firm reportedly issued gold bars that year. Shortly afterward, the firm sold its operations to the United States government, as the precursor of the Denver Mint. The 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar pieces, like all the 1860 issues, were struck in unalloyed gold, causing the soft gold coins to wear down quickly. As a result, the issue is seldom encountered in Mint State grades today. A small amount of silver was added to the 1861 issues, to alleviate this problem. The obverse design of the ten and twenty dollar pieces featured an artist's conception of Pike's Peak that was not very realistic and was replaced by the more familiar head of Liberty the following year. A good description of the 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. ten dollar piece is found in lot 829 of the Charles W. Cowell Collection (B. Max Mehl, 11/1911): {blockquote}"1860 $10 Obverse, view of Pike's Peak, below which is the word DENVER. Around border, PIKES PEAK GOLD. TEN D. Reverse, defiant eagle with U.S. shield on breast; an olive branch in his right talon and three arrows in left. Around CLARK, GRUBER & CO. 1860. Extremely fine. very rare."{/blockquote} Cowell was a collector from Denver and, according to Mehl, his collection was the first offering to include a complete set of Clark, Gruber & Co. issues. Recent sales of the ten dollar issue include the terrific MS63 NGC coin in lot 5460 of the Riverboat Collection (Heritage, 4/2014) that realized $111,625. The coin offered here is an attractive MS61 example with vivid orange-gold surfaces that show a scattering of minor contact marks on both sides, with traces of prooflike reflectivity in sheltered areas. The design elements are well-detailed, and a spidery die crack shows on the reverse, from the edge at 9:30 to the eagle's beak. We expect intense competition when this impressive Colorado rarity crosses the auction block. Census: 5 in 61, 10 finer (8/14). Ex: Eric Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $47000.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1860 $5 Clark, Gruber & Co. Five Dollar MS63+ NGC. CAC. K-2, R.4. Brothers Austin and Milton Clark made a small fortune selling groceries and supplies from their store in Leavenworth, Kansas to miners seeking gold in Colorado during the late 1850s. They went into the banking business with Emanuel Gruber, from Hagerstown, Maryland, and soon found themselves handling large amounts of gold dust from the newly discovered gold fields. When the extent of the gold rush became apparent, Clark Gruber & Co. established a private mint in Denver to coin the vast amounts of raw gold into coins of two and a half, five, ten, and twenty dollar denominations, providing a much-needed convenient medium of exchange for the local economy. Clark, Gruber & Co. enjoyed an excellent reputation with merchants, bankers, and businessmen, as their assays were scrupulously correct and their coins contained full weight and value of gold. Operating in 1860 and 1861, the firm steadily improved their coins in terms of design, strike, and durability. The coins produced in 1860 were not alloyed with silver or copper, making them soft and easy to wear down. A small amount of silver was added in 1861, and those coins proved more durable and were generally better struck than the 1860 issues. The date Clark, Gruber & Co. ceased operations is not known, but the federal government acquired the firm's assaying and coining operations in April of 1863 for the U.S. Assay Office at Denver, which eventually became the Denver Mint. The Clark, Gruber issues were popular with collectors at an early date and examples appeared at auction with some frequency in the early part of the 20th century. A good description of the Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar piece (which closely resembles the contemporary federal half eagles) was provided in lot 1954 of the Matthew Stickney Collection (Henry Chapman, 6/1907): {blockquote}"1860 $5. Head of Liberty to left, CLARK & CO. on diadem, around 13 stars beneath date. R. Eagle with shield on breast, faces right, olive branch in his right talon and three arrows in left. PIKES PEAK GOLD DENVER. FIVE D. Borders beaded, edge milled. Very fine. Nick on reverse edge. See plate."{/blockquote} The lot realized a reasonable $12.50 to an unknown buyer. Recent sales include the fabulous MS65 PCGS example in lot 5617 of the FUN Signature Sale (Heritage, 1/2014), which realized $176,250. The 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar gold piece is difficult to locate in high grade, but some high-quality examples have survived. The present coin is a high-end Select piece that traces its history to the famous cabinet of Waldo Newcomer. Newcomer was a Baltimore financier who formed one of the finest collections of all time in the first quarter of the 20th century. Unfortunately, his business suffered during the depression, and he sold his U.S. coins through B. Max Mehl, and his patterns and world coins through Wayte Raymond and James MacCallister, in the early 1930s. This coin possesses outstanding eye appeal and a high technical grade for a Territorial gold issue. The design elements are well detailed, with just a touch of the usual softness on the central obverse. The vivid orange-gold surfaces are brightly lustrous and show only minor signs of contact. A few interesting die cracks are evident on the obverse. This outstanding Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar gold piece is a prize for the connoisseur of Territorial gold. Census: 5 in 63 (1 in 63+), 3 finer (8/14). Ex: Waldo Newcomer; possibly "Colonel" E.H.R. Green, via B. Max Mehl circa 1933; Eric P. Newman; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $28200.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1860 $5 Clark, Gruber & Co. Five Dollar MS63+ NGC. CAC. K-2, R.4. Brothers Austin and Milton Clark made a small fortune selling groceries and supplies from their store in Leavenworth, Kansas to miners seeking gold in Colorado during the late 1850s. They went into the banking business with Emanuel Gruber, from Hagerstown, Maryland, and soon found themselves handling large amounts of gold dust from the newly discovered gold fields. When the extent of the gold rush became apparent, Clark Gruber & Co. established a private mint in Denver to coin the vast amounts of raw gold into coins of two and a half, five, ten, and twenty dollar denominations, providing a much-needed convenient medium of exchange for the local economy. Clark, Gruber & Co. enjoyed an excellent reputation with merchants, bankers, and businessmen, as their assays were scrupulously correct and their coins contained full weight and value of gold. Operating in 1860 and 1861, the firm steadily improved their coins in terms of design, strike, and durability. The coins produced in 1860 were not alloyed with silver or copper, making them soft and easy to wear down. A small amount of silver was added in 1861, and those coins proved more durable and were generally better struck than the 1860 issues. The date Clark, Gruber & Co. ceased operations is not known, but the federal government acquired the firm's assaying and coining operations in April of 1863 for the U.S. Assay Office at Denver, which eventually became the Denver Mint. The Clark, Gruber issues were popular with collectors at an early date and examples appeared at auction with some frequency in the early part of the 20th century. A good description of the Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar piece (which closely resembles the contemporary federal half eagles) was provided in lot 1954 of the Matthew Stickney Collection (Henry Chapman, 6/1907): {blockquote}"1860 $5. Head of Liberty to left, CLARK & CO. on diadem, around 13 stars beneath date. R. Eagle with shield on breast, faces right, olive branch in his right talon and three arrows in left. PIKES PEAK GOLD DENVER. FIVE D. Borders beaded, edge milled. Very fine. Nick on reverse edge. See plate."{/blockquote} The lot realized a reasonable $12.50 to an unknown buyer. Recent sales include the fabulous MS65 PCGS example in lot 5617 of the FUN Signature Sale (Heritage, 1/2014), which realized $176,250. The 1860 Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar gold piece is difficult to locate in high grade, but some high-quality examples have survived. The present coin is a high-end Select piece that traces its history to the famous cabinet of Waldo Newcomer. Newcomer was a Baltimore financier who formed one of the finest collections of all time in the first quarter of the 20th century. Unfortunately, his business suffered during the depression, and he sold his U.S. coins through B. Max Mehl, and his patterns and world coins through Wayte Raymond and James MacCallister, in the early 1930s. This coin possesses outstanding eye appeal and a high technical grade for a Territorial gold issue. The design elements are well detailed, with just a touch of the usual softness on the central obverse. The vivid orange-gold surfaces are brightly lustrous and show only minor signs of contact. A few interesting die cracks are evident on the obverse. This outstanding Clark, Gruber & Co. five dollar gold piece is a prize for the connoisseur of Territorial gold. Census: 5 in 63 (1 in 63+), 3 finer (8/14). Ex: Waldo Newcomer; possibly "Colonel" E.H.R. Green, via B. Max Mehl circa 1933; Eric P. Newman; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $28200.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1855 $50 Wass Molitor Fifty Dollar MS61 NGC. K-9, R.5. The firm of Wass, Molitor & Co. was established by two Hungarian patriots who were forced to flee their country after the revolution of 1848 was repressed by Austria. Both Agoston Molitor and Count Samuel C. Wass attended the prestigious School of Mines of Germany, and both had acquired much practical experience working in mines in their own country before relocating to California. In October of 1851 the two men established an assay office on Montgomery Street in San Francisco. They acquired high-quality equipment from London and the United States, and their business practices were scrupulously honest, gaining the firm a reputation as one of the finest assaying concerns in California. The California economy was in crisis in late 1851, as all the private mints that operated in the period from 1849 to 1851 had been shut down and the United States Assay Office of Gold was only authorized to issue coins of the fifty dollar denomination. The resulting shortage of smaller coins made conducting everyday business transactions almost impossible. Urgently requested to issue private gold coinage by merchants and bankers in San Francisco, Wass, Molitor & Co. issued coins of the five and ten dollar denominations in 1852. The coins were of full weight and value and were well-received by the public, but the company stopped issuing coins after 1852, when the worst of the crisis was past. Unfortunately, a similar situation arose in March of 1855, when the newly established San Francisco Mint was forced to suspend operations, due to a shortage of parting acids and other problems. Once again, local businessmen appealed to Wass, Molitor & Co. to issue coinage on an emergency basis and the firm responded by producing a large number of coins in ten, twenty, and fifty dollar denominations. Unlike the earlier crisis in 1852, the larger denominations were needed as much as the smaller coins, because the Assay Office had sold their facilities to the new federal mint and the massive fifty dollar slugs were no longer circulating. An article in the San Francisco Herald of March 1, 1854 explained the need for such coins in California: {blockquote}"In a country like our own, where the currency is purely metallic, it is of great importance to have coins issued of a size which will admit of rapid and easy counting, both in receiving and paying money; and the experience of all our businessmen goes to show that in the absence of bank notes the Fifty Dollar piece is the most convenient coin for such a purpose."{/blockquote} At the peak of their output in 1855, Wass, Molitor & Co. produced twenty and fifty dollar pieces at the rate of $38,000 per day in face value, according to local newspaper reports. The fifty dollar pieces circulated readily in other parts of the country and in foreign trade, as well as the regional economy. According to Donald Kagin, the round shape of the coins and the availability of smaller denominations by the same issuer contributed to their easy acceptance. Wass, Molitor & Co. ceased coinage operations shortly after their 1855 issues were distributed. The first auction appearance of the present coin that we can trace with certainty is lot 1198 of the James B. Wilson Collection (Thomas Elder, 10/1908): {blockquote}"1855 $50. Round. Obv. Head of Liberty to left; around 13 stars, below '1855.' Rev. Olive wreath enclosing '50 Dollars,' above this on label '900 Thous.' outside of wreath, above 'San Francisco, California,' below 'Wass, Molitor & Co.' edge milled. The piece has several of the minutest ticks, otherwise an uncirculated specimen. This piece I regard as much superior to the one in my XVII. sale which old numismatists pronounced the best they had ever seen. Extremely rare. Plate."{/blockquote} As Elder's description suggests, the Wass, Molitor fifty dollar coins are seldom encountered in high grade, and the two leading grading services have combined to certify only six examples in Mint State between them (8/14). The auction prices realized record for the issue is held by the marvelous MS63 NGC example in lot 5446 of the Riverboat Collection (Heritage, 4/2014), which brought $411,250. The present coin was a highlight of the famous Waldo Newcomer Collection, after its appearance in Elder's Wilson sale, and probably passed through the collection of "Col." E.H.R. Green before Eric P. Newman acquired it, although specific documentation is not available on that point. It is an attractive MS61 piece, with sharply detailed design elements in most areas and just a touch of softness on the peripheral letters on the reverse. The lustrous orange-gold surfaces show a few scattered contact marks, but the fields are remarkably clean for such a large gold coin. This example combines intense historic interest, condition rarity, and outstanding visual appeal in one irresistible package. Census: 3 in 61, 2 finer (8/14). Ex: James B. Wilson; Wilson Collection (Thomas Elder, 10/1908), lot 1198, Waldo Newcomer, plate matched to the Newcomer plates; possibly "Col." E.H.R. Green; Eric P. Newman; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $164500.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1855 $50 Wass Molitor Fifty Dollar MS61 NGC. K-9, R.5. The firm of Wass, Molitor & Co. was established by two Hungarian patriots who were forced to flee their country after the revolution of 1848 was repressed by Austria. Both Agoston Molitor and Count Samuel C. Wass attended the prestigious School of Mines of Germany, and both had acquired much practical experience working in mines in their own country before relocating to California. In October of 1851 the two men established an assay office on Montgomery Street in San Francisco. They acquired high-quality equipment from London and the United States, and their business practices were scrupulously honest, gaining the firm a reputation as one of the finest assaying concerns in California. The California economy was in crisis in late 1851, as all the private mints that operated in the period from 1849 to 1851 had been shut down and the United States Assay Office of Gold was only authorized to issue coins of the fifty dollar denomination. The resulting shortage of smaller coins made conducting everyday business transactions almost impossible. Urgently requested to issue private gold coinage by merchants and bankers in San Francisco, Wass, Molitor & Co. issued coins of the five and ten dollar denominations in 1852. The coins were of full weight and value and were well-received by the public, but the company stopped issuing coins after 1852, when the worst of the crisis was past. Unfortunately, a similar situation arose in March of 1855, when the newly established San Francisco Mint was forced to suspend operations, due to a shortage of parting acids and other problems. Once again, local businessmen appealed to Wass, Molitor & Co. to issue coinage on an emergency basis and the firm responded by producing a large number of coins in ten, twenty, and fifty dollar denominations. Unlike the earlier crisis in 1852, the larger denominations were needed as much as the smaller coins, because the Assay Office had sold their facilities to the new federal mint and the massive fifty dollar slugs were no longer circulating. An article in the San Francisco Herald of March 1, 1854 explained the need for such coins in California: {blockquote}"In a country like our own, where the currency is purely metallic, it is of great importance to have coins issued of a size which will admit of rapid and easy counting, both in receiving and paying money; and the experience of all our businessmen goes to show that in the absence of bank notes the Fifty Dollar piece is the most convenient coin for such a purpose."{/blockquote} At the peak of their output in 1855, Wass, Molitor & Co. produced twenty and fifty dollar pieces at the rate of $38,000 per day in face value, according to local newspaper reports. The fifty dollar pieces circulated readily in other parts of the country and in foreign trade, as well as the regional economy. According to Donald Kagin, the round shape of the coins and the availability of smaller denominations by the same issuer contributed to their easy acceptance. Wass, Molitor & Co. ceased coinage operations shortly after their 1855 issues were distributed. The first auction appearance of the present coin that we can trace with certainty is lot 1198 of the James B. Wilson Collection (Thomas Elder, 10/1908): {blockquote}"1855 $50. Round. Obv. Head of Liberty to left; around 13 stars, below '1855.' Rev. Olive wreath enclosing '50 Dollars,' above this on label '900 Thous.' outside of wreath, above 'San Francisco, California,' below 'Wass, Molitor & Co.' edge milled. The piece has several of the minutest ticks, otherwise an uncirculated specimen. This piece I regard as much superior to the one in my XVII. sale which old numismatists pronounced the best they had ever seen. Extremely rare. Plate."{/blockquote} As Elder's description suggests, the Wass, Molitor fifty dollar coins are seldom encountered in high grade, and the two leading grading services have combined to certify only six examples in Mint State between them (8/14). The auction prices realized record for the issue is held by the marvelous MS63 NGC example in lot 5446 of the Riverboat Collection (Heritage, 4/2014), which brought $411,250. The present coin was a highlight of the famous Waldo Newcomer Collection, after its appearance in Elder's Wilson sale, and probably passed through the collection of "Col." E.H.R. Green before Eric P. Newman acquired it, although specific documentation is not available on that point. It is an attractive MS61 piece, with sharply detailed design elements in most areas and just a touch of softness on the peripheral letters on the reverse. The lustrous orange-gold surfaces show a few scattered contact marks, but the fields are remarkably clean for such a large gold coin. This example combines intense historic interest, condition rarity, and outstanding visual appeal in one irresistible package. Census: 3 in 61, 2 finer (8/14). Ex: James B. Wilson; Wilson Collection (Thomas Elder, 10/1908), lot 1198, Waldo Newcomer, plate matched to the Newcomer plates; possibly "Col." E.H.R. Green; Eric P. Newman; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $164500.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
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- 1852 $10 Wass Molitor Ten Dollar, Large Head, Wide Date MS63 NGC. CAC. K-4, R.5. The firm of Wass, Molitor & Co. issued private gold coins in five and ten dollar denominations on an emergency basis, beginning in January of 1852. The coins were struck to alleviate a crippling shortage of small denomination gold coins in the region, as all the earlier private mints had been closed by 1851, and the United States Assay Office of Gold was not authorized to issue any coins except their octagonal fifty dollar slugs, which were handy for large transactions, but useless in making change for small purchases. After much argument and several changes in direction, Moffat & Co., acting under their government contract as the U.S. Assay Office, finally received permission to issue lower denomination gold coins in early 1852. The two companies were able to strike enough coins to meet the economic needs of the region for some time, and no Wass, Molitor & Co. issues were coined in 1853 or 1854. The Wass, Molitor & Co. ten dollar coins were struck in large numbers, and the issue was well-received because the intrinsic value of the coins was at least as great as the face value. Three die varieties are known for the date, with this coin representing the popular K-4 variety, identified by the pointed bust of Liberty and the wide uneven date. Probably no more than 100 examples of the K-4 variety survive today in all grades, as the great majority of the pieces were turned in for recoinage after the San Francisco Mint opened in 1854. The central devices on the obverse die were deeply cut, and the reverse is typically softly impressed on the corresponding area. Donald Kagin enumerates 10 obverse die cracks on the K-4 issue, with another three on the reverse. The Wass, Molitor &Co. ten dollar gold piece was a popular issue with collectors in the early part of the 20th century. We have tentatively identified this coin as an example from the fabulous collection of Waldo Newcomer, based on similarities between the coin and the image of the Wass, Molitor & Co. ten dollar piece on B. Max Mehl's Newcomer plates. The image and the coin share the following features: {blockquote}1. A tiny obverse rim bruise at about 6 o,clock, just left of the 8 in the date. 2. A small contact mark on Liberty's nose. 3. Three small obverse planchet flakes, one slightly above and to the right of the date, and two in the field, near star 2. 4. A curling lint mark behind the lowest bun of Liberty's hair. 5. A small slanting contact mark on the upper side of the eagle's wing on the reverse. 6. Two more minor contact marks in the reverse field, one above the eagle's head, and another just in from the rim at about 7 o'clock.{/blockquote} Curiously, some marks that do show on the coin are not visible on the Newcomer plate. This may be a trick of the lighting, or it is possible that the marks were not yet on the coin when the photograph was taken more than 80 years ago. Plate matching images of this vintage is always difficult, and we acknowledge the slight possibility that we may be in error in this instance, but the many similarities noted above are quite convincing. The great majority of Newcomer's American coins were sold through B. Max Mehl in the early 1930s, with the lion's share of the gold going to "Col." E.H. R. Green. Eric P. Newman acquired many of Green's coins when his collection was broken up in the early 1940s, and this piece may have been among them, but no documentary evidence has survived to confirm this. The present coin is tied for finest certified with one other coin at NGC, while PCGS has graded no example finer than MS62 (8/14). The design elements are sharply rendered and the lemon-yellow surfaces radiate vibrant mint luster throughout. This coin should find a home in the finest collection of Territorial gold. Ex: Possibly Waldo Newcomer and "Col." E.H.R. Green; Eric P. Newman; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society. Realized $82250.00. Description courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
