1874-CC Liberty Head Half Eagle. MS-62 (PCGS). OGH.，This beautiful early Carson City half eagle offers absolute scarcity and remarkable condition rarity. Satiny medium gold surfaces exhibit bold to sharp striking detail throughout the design. The appearance is exceptionally smooth for the assigned grade, and this upper end MS-62 is very close to Choice quality. This is a highly significant offering and an important bidding opportunity for advanced Liberty Head half eagle and Carson City Mint enthusiasts.<p>The fifth entry in the Carson City Mint half eagle series, the 1874-CC had a mintage of just 21,198 pieces. As with all early date issues in this mintmarked gold series, these coins were not used for export, but as a workhorse of domestic commerce on the frontier where paper money was never seen and business was conducted using gold and silver. Attrition through circulation was high, especially since there were no numismatists active in the West during the 1870s who might have set aside some examples. In the East contemporary collectors were focused on yearly Proof coinage; the 1874-CC half eagle was struck nearly two decades before publication of Augustus G. Heatons seminal work on mintmarks.<p>In todays market the typically encountered 1874-CC half eagle is found well worn in grades such as VF or EF. In our August 2012 catalog for the Battle Born Collection, Carson City Mint expert Rusty Goe estimated that only 200 to 250 coins are extant, only three or four of which are Mint State. The leading certification services PCGS and NGC report just three grading events for this issue in Mint State, although we can positively account for just two of these coins:<p>1 - <strong>PCGS MS-62</strong>. Ex our (Stacks) sale of the Robison Collection of United States Gold Coins, February 1979, lot 498; our (Stacks) sale of the Reed Hawn Collection, October 1993, lot 995; Dr. Larry Cutler Collection; Doug Winter and Lee Minshull, November 1996; the Nevada Collection; the Battle Born Collection; our sale of the Battle Born Collection of Carson City Mint Coinage, August 2012, lot 11005. The plate coin for the issue on page 36 of the 2001 book, <em>Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint</em>, by Douglas Winter and James L. Halperin.<p>2 - <strong>PCGS MS-62</strong>. Ex our (Bowers and Merenas) George N. Polis, M.D. Collection sale, June 1991, lot 1512; via Stacks; A.J. Vanderbilt Collection. <em><strong>The present example</strong></em>.<p>An MS-61 listed on the NGC Census appears to be a relative (post-2003) newcomer to the Condition Census for this issue.<p>This lovely half eagle combines premium quality with exceptional rarity, and would enhance even the finest numismatic cabinet.，From the A.J. Vanderbilt Collection. Earlier from our (Bowers and Merenas) George N. Polis, M.D. Collection sale, June 1991, lot 1512; via Stacks.，
