1839 Gobrecht Silver Dollar. Name Removed. Judd-104 Original, Pollock-116. Rarity-3. Silver. Reeded Edge. Die Alignment IV. Proof. VF Details--Repaired (PCGS).Korein-27. 413.0 grains. DTS Die State B. Offered is an overall boldly defined Gobrecht dollar, one of the scarcest and most challenging design types to collect in the United States silver dollar series. The dark charcoal surfaces have been retoned over a matte-like in texture from a harsh cleaning, and there is also evidence of smoothing and other work to explain the catch-all qualifier of "repaired" from PCGS. Libertys portrait and the eagle retain sharper detail in the recesses, and the design in its entirety is fully appreciable.<p>With all the variations of Gobrecht dollars struck in the 1860s and 1870s, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that many Gobrechts were actually coined for circulation. This piece, despite its description as a Proof, is one of them. PCGS has certified it as an original - it has wear commensurate with such a piece, and with no die clashing discernible at Libertys elbow and light roughness at the letters TA in STATES, it is a Die State B original as defined by John Dannreuther, Saul Teichman, and Craig Sholley, authors of the <em>gobrechtdollars.com</em> website. They further state that original 1839 dollars, coined in the last week of that year, "are in Alignment IV, have weak mirrors, more [semi-prooflike] than fully [prooflike], and typically come with a weakly struck foot."<p>Regardless of date, variety or striking period, all Gobrecht dollars are scarce (if not rare) and enjoy strong demand from advanced collectors. The 1839 Judd-104 Original is one of the rarest and most challenging varieties in this series. Only 300 were struck in December 1839, likely as a test of the new dollar steam press in anticipation of increased mintages beginning in 1840 with the launch of the Liberty Seated design. Most were released into commercial channels, where they seem to have gone largely unnoticed at the time. Only 75 to 100 examples of the 1839 Gobrecht dollar are believed extant, but this total includes about a dozen Die Alignment III Restrikes, so survivors of the original circulating issue of December 1839 number just 65 to 70 coins. Most are impaired, suggesting mishandling on the part of early collectors or other interested parties who obtained the coins after their retrieval from circulation in the late 1850s, when coin collecting first became widely popular in the United States. Indeed, the 1839 Judd-104 Original is not only one of the most challenging Gobrecht dollars to locate, it is also one of the most difficult to find "nice." The offered coin is pretty typical for a circulated survivor, yet while somewhat more affordable for the issue, it is still a noteworthy rarity that would make an impressive addition to many cabinets.PCGS# 11444. NGC ID: BLY5.From the Julius Korein Collection, sold to benefit the American Numismatic Society.
