1854 Three-Dollar Gold Piece. MS-66 (PCGS). CAC.An incredibly lustrous and satiny example of this noteworthy condition rarity in the three-dollar gold series. The strike is sharp throughout, with strong definition to Libertys hair and throughout the wreath on the reverse. Virtually pristine surfaces and exceptional eye appeal make this a truly choice representative that collectors will not want to miss.The 1854 $3 gold issue is a one-year-only design type with the denomination, DOLLARS, expressed in particularly small letters. The mints at Philadelphia, Dahlonega, and New Orleans all struck and issued the $3 denomination in 1854 with the small DOLLARS reverse lettering style. The presses at Charlotte -- and later, Carson City -- never struck a $3 gold piece of any date, and the freshly opened San Francisco Mint only issued the denomination sporadically beginning in 1855. From 1855 onward until the close of the series in 1889, the word DOLLARS appears in noticeably larger letters. The vast majority of 1854 $3 gold coins extant are in circulated grades of EF or AU, with occasional appearances of Mint State coins, but rarely finer than MS-64. Of the 136,618 pieces struck, the present example is among the finest certified. PCGS Set Registry participants and collectors of the finest U.S. gold coinage will surely realize this immense opportunity.PCGS# 7969. NGC ID: 25M3.
