1871-CC Liberty Head Double Eagle. EF-45 (NGC).An overall boldly defined example warmly patinated in a blend of honey-olive and deep gold.<p>The early gold coins struck at the Carson City Mint have long had a special appeal to Western gold enthusiasts. With its comparatively remote location and small population base who generally distrusted paper money, Carson City double eagles tended to quickly enter circulation and remain there for years rather than be exported abroad as was often the case with similar Philadelphia or San Francisco issues. The 1871-CC is no exception; the 174,387 coins produced were immediately absorbed into the local economy where they saw all the usual rigors of circulation with its resultant damage. Even with its relatively large mintage (for Carson City), the 1871-CC double eagle is one of the rarities of the series, second only to the famed 1870-CC. Locating an evenly worn undamaged or seriously impaired example is an achievement in its own right and this example will prove to be quite at home in any Western gold specialists cabinet.
