1836 Gobrecht Silver Dollar. Name on Base. Judd-60 Original, Pollock-65. Rarity-1. Silver. Plain Edge. Die Alignment IV. Proof-45 (PCGS). Offered is perhaps the most popular, and certainly the most obtainable, Judd number of the Gobrecht silver dollar. This is a pleasing specimen for the grade with appreciable mint finish evident. Both sides are brilliant apart from delicate iridescent gold retoning that is most pronounced around the obverse periphery. Light high point wear does little more than define the grade, the detail otherwise razor sharp to full. Faint hairlines are noted, but the surfaces are pleasingly smooth with just a few sizable marks. DTS Die State E.Recent authors have generally recognized four different die alignments for Gobrecht dollars, designated as I (coin turn, eagle flying upwards), II (medal turn, eagle flying upwards), III (coin turn, eagle flying level with respect to obverse), and IV (medal turn, eagle flying level with respect to obverse). When Walter Breen wrote his <em>Complete Encyclopedia</em> in 1988, he considered Die Alignment I examples of the Judd-60 Name on Base issue to be originals from 1836 and Die Alignment II pieces from a mintage of 600 pieces delivered in March of 1837. He regarded Die Alignment III and IV pieces as restrikes. This view had been challenged by the early 1990s, when it was found that many Die Alignment IV pieces evinced signs of circulation, suggesting that they had been made for that purpose rather than to accommodate coin collectors. Modern research by Craig Sholley, John Dannreuther, and Saul Teichman (based on an exhaustive examination of die state evidence), reported that the die alignment sequence of Judd-60 Gobrecht dollars is actually I-IV-II-IV-I-IV. All examples in these alignments are originals attributed to the December 1836 issue of 1,000 coins; the 600 pieces struck in March 1837 represent a test striking, and all were subsequently melted. Die alignment III pieces are still regarded as restrikes coined decades later than 1836. Pollock in his <em>United States Patterns and Related Issues</em> considered Die Alignment II and III pieces as the scarcest alignment varieties, followed by IV. He regarded Die Alignment I pieces to be the most readily available. PCGS# 11226. NGC ID: BLWV.
