1879-CC Liberty Head Half Eagle. Winter 2-A. AU-50 (PCGS). Offered is an well preserved and highly attractive example of the key date 1879-CC half eagle. Plenty of mint luster remains on both sides, the surfaces with glints of rose iridescence enlivening otherwise dominant orange-gold patina. Sharply struck with minimal wear and a pleasingly smooth appearance in hand. Due to outlandish railroad tariffs, by the late 1870s it was more profitable for Nevada miners to send their bullion for coinage to the San Francisco Mint as opposed to the nearby Carson City facility. Carson City Mint expert Rusty Goe (August 2012) states that, "By 1879, Nevadas miners were already sending about 100 times as much of their gold to the San Francisco Mint than they were depositing in Carson City, and about 13 times as much silver." It is little wonder, therefore, that the Nevada branch mint produced so few gold coins of any denomination in 1879. The 1879-CC half eagle boasts a limited mintage of 17,281 pieces, and it is a scarce issue in an absolute sense. Rusty Goe provided for only 270 to 340 circulated survivors and just four to six Uncirculated coins in his cataloging for our August 2012 sale of the Battle Born Collection. A charming AU that will garner plenty of attention from specialists of the series.
