1848 Liberty Head Quarter Eagle. CAL. AU Details--Repaired (PCGS).Razor sharp striking detail and rather handsome honey-olive retoning provide uncommonly strong eye appeal for the assigned grade. There are no detracting marks or other sizeable blemishes, wispy hairlines and evidence of smoothing help to explain the PCGS qualifier.<p>The 1848 CAL. quarter eagle carries the distinction of being the first commemorative coin produced, long before the 1892 Worlds Columbian Exposition silver half dollars. One of the defining moments of American history took place on January 24, 1848 at John Sutters mill in Coloma, California when James W. Marshall discovered gold in the channel below the mill. Word spread and soon thereafter the great California Gold Rush was on. In August of 1848, the acting military governor of California, R. B. Mason, received roughly 228 ounces of gold averaging .894 fineness from Army Quartermaster Joseph Libbey Folsom (for whom Folsom State Prison is named), who had purchased the gold for $10 an ounce., Mason shipped the gold to President James K. Polks Secretary of War, William L. Marcy back in Washington. After Marcy received the special shipment in December, he relayed it to the Philadelphia Mint to have quarter eagles struck "with a distinguishing mark on each" from the balance after two Congressional gold medals were produced. Documentation has since been discovered that the two medals were actually made from a gold deposit received the day before. In all, approximately 1,389 quarter eagles were struck with the letters CAL. punched into the reverse field above the eagles head while the coins were still in the coining press. Initially, the coins were made available at face value to anyone who desired them, but at most only a few dozen people were made aware of the pieces at the time. Afterwards, the remaining coins were placed into circulation unceremoniously where they were heavily used alongside regular issue quarter eagles. Today, the 1848 CAL. quarter eagles are among the most sought after regular issues associated to the Gold Rush. The few remaining specimens are eagerly pursued at all grade levels and tightly held. The addition of any example to a collection has long been considered a noteworthy achievement. Here is just such an opportunity that is not easily overlooked.
