1893-S Morgan Silver Dollar. MS-65 (PCGS). CAC. OGH. Offered here is a phenomenal high Condition Census Gem Mint State example of this legendary key date Morgan dollar issue. Richly and attractively toned, both sides display blended antique gold, blue-gray and pale rose patina. Splashes of even more vivid reddish-russet toning are evident along Libertys profile and in isolated areas around the peripheries on both sides. Razor sharp striking detail is noted, even on the hair curls over Libertys ear on the obverse and the eagles breast features on the reverse. The luster is full and frosty and the surfaces are remarkably nice for an issue that is rare even at the lowest Uncirculated grade levels. One of our most important offerings ever for the issue, and a leading highlight of the fabulous Larry H. Miller cabinet, this lovely and exceedingly rare 1893-S will surely find its way into another world class Morgan dollar set.<p>Needing no introduction, even among more casual collectors, the 1893-S is the lowest mintage and, in terms of total number of coins extant, also the rarest circulation strike Morgan silver dollar. A number of factors explain the sharp reduction in silver dollar production at all U.S. coinage facilities in 1893. The most significant is the onset of a serious economic depression that would eventually be known as the Panic of 1893. This downturn would help keep yearly silver dollar mintages depressed through 1895. In 1893 the San Francisco Mint struck only 100,000 circulation strike Morgan silver dollars.<p>The existence of several thousand worn survivors points to distribution into commercial channels for the 1893-S issue. Although traditional numismatic wisdom states that these coins entered circulation during the final years of the 19th century, the economic situation at that time, combined with the fact that most such examples grade Fine or Very Fine, argues for a later distribution. Q. David Bowers (1993) surmises that most examples may have circulated beginning in the mid 1920s, this theory based in part on a report from numismatist E.S. Thresher in 1925 which told of his inability to find an 1893-S in circulation despite searching since 1919. Regardless of when they entered circulation, many 1893-S dollars found their way back into government storage at some point, for as late as the 1950s and early 1960s mixed bags of circulated dollars released from Treasury Department stocks were apt to contain a few worn examples of the 1893-S. Today, circulated coins are all that keep the 1893-S from being a virtually noncollectible issue. In fact, Bowers states that the 1893-S is the rarest silver dollar of this design type in worn condition after only the 1885-CC, 1903-O and 1898-O, all of which are far more common than the 1893-S in Mint State.<p>In Mint State the 1893-S is <strong><em>the rarest Morgan silver dollar</em></strong>, eclipsing even the famous 1892-S. Bowers states, "I have never personally seen a quantity of Mint State 1893-S dollars," and the author is silent on the subject of significant releases from government vaults as there were no such releases of 1893-S dollars. Given the great rarity of this issue in Mint State, it is easy to conclude that tens of thousands of examples -- likely more than half of the mintage -- was destroyed through melting under provision of the Pittman Act in 1918. "Significant" finds for Mint State 1893-S dollars that Bowers has been able to confirm are confined to 20 examples included in a bag of 1894-S dollars that surfaced in Great Falls, Montana in the early 1950s, and a single (!) BU roll handled by Aaron Stollman in the early 1970s (as reported to Maurice Rosen).<p>Wayne Miller (1982) credits the Great Falls, Montana find with many of the Mint State coins on the market in the early 1980s, noting further that those coins had been "dispersed over a twenty year period, one or two at a time." The tremendous increase in price experienced by the 1893-S in Mint State from 1972 to 1980 brought no more than a dozen or so coins into the market. Miller also stated, "most of the mint state 1893-S dollars which have appeared in the past five years [leading up to 1982] have been unappealing specimens." There were exceptions, however, and Miller discusses at length the four finest examples of the 1893-S known to him when his <em>Morgan and Peace Dollar Textbook </em>was published in 1982. These were the Paramount Coin Corporation specimen acquired at the November 1973 Grand Central Show in New York, the coin sold to a New York collector by Colonial Coins, an example acquired by John Love and Joel Rettew at a Chicago coin show in 1974, and the Amon G. Carter, Jr. specimen obtained from famous Fort Worth, Texas dealer B. Max Mehls Golden Jubilee Sale in 1950.<p>The advent of third-party certification in the mid 1980s has brought about a more universally accepted Condition Census for the 1893-S dollar. Additionally, a small number of other exceptional coins that were unknown to Wayne Miller in the 1980s have since been recognized. Today, the finest known 1893-S is widely regarded as the Cornelius Vermeule-Jack Lee specimen currently certified MS-67 by PCGS. The CC#2 ranking for this issue represents a tie between a small number of coins in PCGS MS-65. These include the following:<p>1 - Ex Larry H. Miller Collection. <em><strong>The present example</strong></em>.<p>2 - Ex J. Colvin Randall, March 1894, likely obtained from the Assay Commission; J.M. Clapp; John H. Clapp; Clapp estate, 1942; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; our (Bowers and Merenas) sale of the Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, April 1997, lot 2294; Stellar Collection; Sunnywood Collection; Bob R. Simpson Collection; Legend Rare Coin Auctions sale of October 2014, lot 190; Wizard of Oz Collection.<p>3 - Ex Elliott Goodman Collection; Antelope Valley Silver Dollar Collection, consigned to the following via Barry Stuppler; our (Bowers and Merenas) sale of the Antelope Valley Silver Dollar Collection, January 1993, lot 128; Mark Yaffe; Jefferson Coin and Bullion; Ralph Stone Collection; Sothebys sale of the Ralph and Lois Stone Collection, May 2018, lot 107.<p>4 - Ex B. Max Mehls Golden Jubilee Sale, May 1950, lot 958; Amon G. Carter, Sr.; Amon G. Carter, Jr.; our (Stacks) sale of the Amon G. Carter, Jr. Family Collection, January 1984, lot 364; Wayne Miller; Superiors sale of the Wayne Miler Collection Morgan and Peace Dollar Collection, January 1986, lot 1306; Heritages Early Spring ANA Sale of March 1995, lot 5688. This coin was discussed at length by Wayne Miller in his 1982 <em>Morgan and Peace Dollar Textbook</em>, as above.<p>The current <em>PCGS Population Report</em> includes a fifth entry for the 1893-S dollar in MS-65, but we have been unable to determine if that entry represents a fifth coin or is a resubmission of one of the examples listed above. A word here is also in order regarding the Norweb specimen. Once regarded as the finest known 1893-S Morgan dollar, and previously certified MS-67 by NGC, that coin has since been "conserved" and now displays subdued surfaces. It has most recently been certified MS-66 by NGC.<p>One of only two Morgan dollar issues included in <em>1</em><em>00 Greatest U.S. Coins</em> (Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth, 2008 edition), in which it is ranked #68, the 1893-S is a landmark rarity. Mint State examples at all levels are eagerly sought and have long featured as highlights in renowned Morgan dollar collections and major numismatic auction sales. As a premium quality and visually appealing Gem, the Larry H. Miller specimen is among the finest known for this famous issue, and it is a coin that will surely be treasured by its next owner for years to come. From the Larry H. Miller Collection. From the Larry H. Miller Collection.
