A breathtakingly beautiful example of this rare and highly elusive Proof gold issue. Sharply to fully struck with a soft satin texture, the devices contrast markedly with deeply reflective fields. The surfaces exhibit delightful light golden-orange patina and are expectedly smooth at the Gem grade level.<br />One of the worst financial depressions in American history, the Panic of 1873, was triggered by a complex cascade of unfortunate events. The nations economy was still on the mend from the devastation caused by the Civil War when the railroad industry took off. However, the rapid growth of the railroads and the extensive drain on capital to fund these efforts caused a significant strain on the money supply nation wide. Additionally, the attempt to corner the gold market leading to Black Friday in 1869 was followed in short order by the disastrous Chicago Fire of 1871 and Boston Fire of 1872. European economic instability after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 further impacted the already fragile state of affairs when in September of 1873, the prominent New York banking firm of Jay Cooke & Company found itself unable to sell millions of dollars of bonds on the Northern Pacific Railway. In a matter of days, the firm went bankrupt which triggered a torrent of bank failures across the country, so much so that by October the nation was in a full-blown depression that would last for the next five years. In the middle of this initial wave of economic turmoil was the passage of the Coinage Act of 1873, better known as the Crime of 73, which effectively placed the country on the gold standard and caused a steep decline in the price of silver. The half dime ceased to be struck, the silver dollar was substituted by the higher weight Trade dollar, and the weight of the three remaining silver denominations was increased, which was indicated by the addition of arrows flanking the date. It was under this historical and economic backdrop that the gold Proof coins of 1873 were struck. These coins were studied extensively by Harry X Boosel, who made a particular specialty of all the coins struck in that year, forming the basis of most present-day research on these coins. During the 1870s, Proof gold coins were struck in microscopically small numbers and 1873 is no exception: only 25 pieces of each denomination were produced. The first logotype for the numeral 3 that was employed had the knobs nearly touching. This was found to be way too close in shape to the numeral 8 and the logotype was adjusted to make the knobs further apart. All observed Proof half eagles struck were of the Close 3 style from an obverse die that also saw later use for circulation strikes. While many Proof gold coins of the era were sometimes restruck at a later date for the benefit of collectors, this is not the case with the 1873 half eagle, for which there is no apparent evidence any restrikes were ever produced. As a result, far fewer Proof examples of this denomination survive than of most of the other coins from that year. As Garrett and Guth note in their <em>Encyclopedia of U. S. Gold Coins 1795-1933</em>, "The number of coins certified by the major grading services can be ignored for this issue, as they are highly inflated by resubmissions." Of the dozen or so examples thought to still survive, a few are in institutional collections and are highly unlikely to ever see private sale, leaving a precious handful for collectors to appreciate. Sale records are scant for the issue, many of which are almost certainly reappearances of the same specimen. While a few can lay claim to the Cameo designation, Deep Cameo Proof examples are exceptionally rare in the population figures, making them especially desirable. The frosted devices stand in sharp contrast to the well-known and highly desirable "orange peel" mirror-like fields. An especially remarkable example of one of the great Proof half eagle rarities. With superlative eye appeal combined with extraordinary rarity, the advanced Proof gold specialist is advised to not let this opportunity slip by.<br />,,PCGS# 98468. NGC ID: 28CA.,PCGS Population: just 2; none finer. ,
