1798 B-19, BB-106 Pointed 9 Close Date Rarity 5. PCGS graded AU-53. Subset of PCGS # 40018. In a new secure plus holder. Condition Census. 1798 BB-106 is one of the rarer varieties of the year. An estimated 31 to 75 exist, a comfortable population large enough to assure one for the cabinet of every specialist. Most examples are in the VF range. EF coins are elusive, and AU or finer pieces are exceedingly rare. Even as long ago as the 19th century, J.W. Haseltine called this variety very rare in his 1881 study on early dollars.
A highly pleasing example of the kind of quality one likes to describe for bidders of this actively collected series. Smooth gray originality blends easily with mark-free and relatively detailed highlights on the main devices. A halfhearted impression was often left by the striking of the (possibly worn) dies that made this variety. Here, we see some mild signs of shallow strike on the central hair curls (below the ear) and above the brow, although the facial features are extraordinarily detailed. Libertyís eye is complete, her nose properly formed, and the front of the blouse shows the overlapping folds in the drapery lines. Concerning the eagle, there is nothing to fault on this side, nothing at all. The eagleís eye is complete, the scroll sharply impress by the dies so that the incuse E PLURIBUS UNUM reads perfectly. Both horizontal and vertical lines are complete in the shield, as are the leaves and arrows being grasped in the eagleís talons. So all in all a first-rate example. One of the finest known.
Pop 1; none finer at PCGS for the variety (PCGS # 40023) .
Estimated Value $10,000-UP.
The Dr. Hesselgesser Collection.
The Dr. Hesselgesser Collection of Bust Dollars
