1804 Capped Bust Right Eagle. BD-1, Taraszka-31. Rarity-4+. Crosslet 4. AU-58 (NGC).A handsome Choice About Uncirculated survivor of this historic key date entry in the Capped Bust Right eagle series. Otherwise deep gold surfaces reveal blushes of even more vivid reddish-rose iridescence that are most pronounced around the peripheries. Appreciably semi-prooflike in finish, especially when viewed with the aid of a strong light, both sides also possess bold striking detail in all but a few isolated areas. The $10 eagle was from the outset intended to be the flagship coin of the new nation. Congress mandated that gold coins were to be struck at a 15 to 1 gold to silver ratio, which would prove to be the eventual undoing for the early $10 gold pieces. The economic situation in Europe towards the end of the 18th century and the first years of the 19th century was in a period of severe turmoil. The French Revolution and the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars drastically increased the price of gold especially in relation to plentiful silver coming from the South American mints largely in the form of 8 reales coins. By the time the eagles were introduced into circulation, gold was worth around $15.50 in silver to $1 in gold, making it an appealing prospect for speculation. Almost from the outset, commodity brokers bought up as much of the cheaper American gold coins at their face value and sold them on the European bullion market for a significant margin above face value. So much of the early United States Mint gold coins ended up being sold in this fashion that it is estimated that by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, some 98% of all the gold coins struck at Philadelphia up to then ended up in the brokers crucibles. To make things worse, the silver dollar suffered a similar fate, as it contained more silver than their legal tender equivalents, the Spanish-American 8 reales coins. Mint Director Elias Boudinot protested that until this situation could be rectified, continued production of both the eagle and the silver dollar only to have them end up almost immediately in the hands of a bullion speculator was a futile waste of effort and precious metal. President Thomas Jefferson agreed with this conclusion and in 1804, ordered that production of both denominations be suspended indefinitely. It would not be until 1838 before production of the eagle resumed.Before production of the eagle was suspended, published Mint records indicate a total of 3,757 $10 gold pieces were struck during calendar year 1804, however die analysis tells a more complex story. This is a limited mintage even by early eagle standards, and the number of surviving specimens of the 1804 BD-1 is minuscule. It is believed that somewhere between 80 and 100 pieces exist in all grades. This last issue of early eagles seems to have been handled particularly harshly once released into circulation. Those that did not end up sold as bullion and shipped abroad are in low grades and quite often damaged. In his Numismatic Reflections for the MS-60 example in our August 2011 Baltimore Sale, Q. David Bowers observed that:There is a peculiar thing about eagles dated 1804. First of all, they are very elusive, but my main point is that if somehow ten 1804 eagles could be brought together in one space, along with ten of each other date from 1799 to 1803, the average preservation quality or grade of the 1804 would be significantly lower. Why this is I dont know. Quite puzzling.Indeed, it is challenging even to locate an appealing circulated example of this issue. The present coin is certainly an above average survivor that will please many buyers in todays market. Given that the 1804 date has long held a special fascination among numismatists, we anticipate keen bidder interest in this offering.
