1853 United States Assay Office of Gold $20. K-18. Rarity-2. 900 THOUS. MS-61 (NGC). Lovely rose-gold and honey-apricot surfaces are sharply to fully struck over virtually all design elements. Both sides are lustrous, as befits the assigned grade, with a soft satin texture from the dies. The NGC holder nicely conceals a tiny reverse edge nick just past 9 oclock, and the in hand appearance is pleasingly smooth overall. An impressive coin for both the type and designated grade, and sure to have no difficulty finding its way into an advanced numismatic cabinet.<p>This is one of the most frequently encountered types in the privately minted California Gold Rush coinage series of the late 1840s and 1850s. The United States Assay Office of Gold under Curtis, Perry and Ward struck 2.5 million 900 THOUS $20 gold pieces from the beginning of March to the end of October, 1853. The coins were widely distributed, with many finding their way into circulation on the West Coast and others being shipped back to the Eastern United States as gold bullion. Thirty different dies were used to produce this high mintage issue, and they survived until destroyed by fires caused by the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. Mint State survivors such as this are always in demand. PCGS# 10013. NGC ID: ANHD.
