1795 Capped Bust Right Eagle. BD-5, Taraszka-5. Rarity-5. 13 Leaves. AU-58 (PCGS).Type and Style: Type I: Capped Bust Right, Small Eagle. Style I: Head of 1795 with 15 stars arranged 10 left, five right; Reverse of 1795 with 13 leaves on the palm branch. The head and eagle punches are attributed to hubs prepared by Robert Scot.Die Variety: BD-5, Taraszka-5, Breen 4-B, HBCC-3173. Obverse diagnostics include Libertys bust over the tip of the digit 5 in the date and star 11 away from the letter Y in LIBERTY. On the reverse, the eighth leaf or frond on the palm branch is distant from the letter U in UNITED. This variety represents the last of three uses for this obverse die, which was earlier used to produce the BD-2, Taraszka-2 13 Leaves variety and the fabled BD-3, Taraszka-3 9 Leaves variety. BD-5, Taraszka-5 represents the final use of this reverse die, whose first use was in the BD-4, Taraszka-4 pairing.Die State: BD Die State e/c. The obverse is in an even later, further lapped state than its last usage in the BD-3 9 Leaves marriage. Many of the star points are even further truncated, especially those for stars 2 and 9, and the lapping has also weakened the faint die cracks at the upper left and right points of star 13. The reverse exhibits a prominent lump die break in the field between the words OF and AMERICA, as well as light cracks through the letters UNITED ST and TES, as inherited from its use in the BD-4 marriage. In the present die state for the BD-5 pairing, the reverse die was lapped with the field areas extended between the eagles legs and at the eagles right hip. This is the only known die state for the 1795 BD-5 eagle.Estimated Mintage for the Issue: Most Capped Bust Right, Small Eagle tens were struck from 1795-dated dies. The mintage for calendar year 1795 is 5,583 coins, per Mint records. Dannreuther (Early U.S. Gold Coin Varieties: A Study of Die States, 1795-1834, 2006) provides an estimate of coins struck from 1795-dated dies that ranges from a low of 5,859 to a high of 10,915 pieces.Estimated Mintage for the Variety: Dannreuther provides an estimated mintage of 500 to 1,000 coins from the 1795 BD-5 dies.Estimated Surviving Population for the Variety: Only 35 to 45 examples are believed extant in all grades (per Dannreuther).Strike: This is a well defined coin for the die state, the detail in the centers on both the obverse and reverse is sharp to full. Libertys hair strands are individually outlined and most feathers on the eagles breast are clear and sharp. Isolated peripheral features are a bit soft due to the aforementioned lapping of both dies, and there is scant denticulation at 2 to 3 oclock on both sides due to the presence of a few extremely faint adjustment marks in that area on the obverse. All design elements are fully appreciable, nonetheless, and we note only the lightest trace of rubbing on the high points that is appropriate for the PCGS grade.Surfaces: Deep, rich green-gold patina on both sides displays splashes of reddish-rose iridescence under a light. There is considerable evidence of a semi-prooflike finish; the surfaces are appreciable reflective in the fields. A faint, nearly vertical pin scratch in the lower reverse field from the end of the fourth palm frond is the only useful identifying feature, as the remaining handling marks are mostly small and singularly inconspicuous.Commentary: BD-5 is the final die marriage produced for the 1795 Capped Bust Right eagle, and it is also the scarcest of the four associated with the 13 Leaves Guide Book variety. This variety was created when the early demise of the BD-4 obverse forced Mint personnel to return the obverse die of the BD-2 and BD-3 varieties to production. This obverse, therefore, became the workhorse of the issue, appearing in three different marriages. No die states of this variety are known other than BD Die State e/c, represented here, so it is likely that Mint personnel relapped both sides before using them in the BD-5 combination. This relapping points to clashing in the BD-4 marriage that undoubtedly contributed to (if not caused) the terminal damage to the obverse of that variety. The workhorse obverse of BD-2 and BD-3 was probably relapped as a matter of course to prepare it for one final press run in the BD-5 pairing. With fewer than 50 coins believed extant, BD-5 represents a significant find whenever an example appears on the market. The present example is included in the list of Significant Specimens for the variety in the Taraszka early eagle reference. It is a superior quality Choice AU that will appeal to advanced type collectors and early gold variety specialists.From the Anthony J. Taraszka Collection. Earlier from our (Stacks) sale of September 1995, lot 894. The plate coin for the die variety in the book United States Ten Dollar Gold Eagles: 1795-1804 by Anthony J. Taraszka.
