1794年自由帽1分 PCGS MS 65 Liberty Cap Cent
1794 Liberty Cap Cent. S-57. Rarity-1. Head of 1794. MS-65 BN (PCGS). CAC.An exquisite jewel of a 1794 large cent. The surfaces are aglow with abundant mint frost, both sides with a booming cartwheel luster that swirls effortlessly over both the fields and devices. Considerable mint color remains, particularly on the reverse, and is only slightly mellowed to rose-copper and golden-tan. The color is a light chocolate-brown where toned and there is flash of steel-blue iridescence at the borders. Even the edge of the coin is lustrous, that "third side" with a reflective surface as well as peeps of mint red in the recesses of some of the edge letters. Pristine save for some tiny planchet flakes above the cap and one at the pole, these are extremely minor and as-made. Fabulous quality and off-the-charts eye appeal, this is not only one of the very finest of the die variety, but is among the best preserved examples of the entirety of this famous date.Adding to the allure of such a fine specimen is its provenance to one of the oldest and most famous collections of early U.S. coins. From the moment word reached the United States in 1964 that a group of American coins from the 1790s had been discovered in an English manor, the name Lord St. Oswald has been renowned among numismatists. Despite the spreading fame of this collection, already fevered within days of the sale and undoubtedly greater with decades of retrospect, for years the identity of the collector was shrouded in mystery. Walter Breen, who cataloged for most of the New York numismatic houses in 1964 and was thus in the thick of the Lord St. Oswald fever, concocted an impressive tale about an English lord whose presence at the Philadelphia Mint was feted with presentation strikings. Michael Hodder called Breens fantasies into question in The Asylum in 1994, but threw the baby out with the Breenian bathwater, insisting the coins could be traced no earlier than 1964. David Tripps research discovered William Strickland, a collector and ancestor of the modern Winn/St. Oswald family, who was in Philadelphia in 1794 and 1795, restoring the historical importance of the collection through dutiful documentation.Among the twenty-two 1794 cents in the Lord St. Oswald Collection were three of the Sheldon-57 variety -- a pair of Gem Uncirculated pieces including the present coin, and an additional lightly circulated specimen. The two Gems are virtual twins with similar luster, color, and die state characteristics - its not impossible that they were struck back-to-back and remained together until acquired by Strickland in late 1794. These two sit atop the condition census for the variety and there is nothing else close. Which one is finer is mostly a matter of which coins owner you ask, or which catalog description you read. The other piece, last sold by us as lot 5098 in Part V of the D. Brent Pogue Collection, is in a PCGS MS-65 RB holder and perhaps has a touch more original red than the present coin, but has somewhat uneven toning and a strikethrough depression in the hair. Both coins are fabulous, and it seems the prudent decision is to list them as tied for finest known, as they are in the Noyes census.All told, here is a coin of extraordinary beauty and pedigree representing a significant opportunity for the connoisseur.PCGS# 35633. NGC ID: 223P.Ex William Strickland Collection; Charles Winn (husband of Priscilla Strickland, son-in-law and cousin of William Strickland), by sale, 1834; Rowland Winn, 1st Baron St. Oswald of Nostell, by descent, 1874; Rowland Winn, 2nd Baron St. Oswald of Nostell, by descent, 1893; Rowland George Winn, 3rd Baron St. Oswald of Nostell, by descent, 1919; Rowland Denys Guy Winn, Major the Lord St. Oswald, M.C., by descent, 1957; Christie, Manson, and Woods, Ltd.s sale of English, Foreign, and Important American Coins, the Property of Major the Lord St. Oswald, M.C., October 1964, lot 151; Lester Merkin; Stacks; Frank H. Masters, Jr.; RARCOAs May 1971 sale, lot 69; R. E. Naftzger, Jr.; New Netherlands Coin Co.s sale of the R.E. Naftzger, Jr. Collection, November 1973, lot 378; Del Bland; Dr. Robert J. Shalowitz; Del Bland, January 1985; Bert Cohen; Andy Hain; our (Stacks) sale of the Hain Family Collection, January 2002, lot 732; Superiors June 2002 sale, lot 2437; Chris McCawley, April 2003; Paul Gerrie; Goldbergs sale of the Paul Gerrie Collection, February 2013, lot 33.
