1900 Lesher or Referendum Dollar. Bumstead Type, First Reverse. HK-788. Rarity-5. Silver. No. 156. MS-65 (NGC) 35 mm, octagonal. This richly original, supremely attractive Gem is the finest Lesher dollar of any type that we have offered in recent memory. Glorious satin surfaces are warmly toned in pearl-gray, direct lighting calling forth subtle iridescent undertones of powder blue and pale champagne-pink. Striking detail is razor sharp to full, the individual number 156 neatly impressed at the base of the obverse. (NGC has mounted this piece with the reverse up in the holder.) Combining absolute and condition rarity with breathtaking eye appeal, even the finest specialized collection would be greatly enhanced by the inclusion of this exquisite piece.<p><p>The following is from the December 1900 issue of monthly bankers periodical "Dicker mans United States Treasury Counterfeit Detector REFERENDUM Dollars." -- A Victor, Col., dispatch to the <em>Denver Evening Post</em> says:<p><em>"A unique enterprise has been established in Victor by Joseph Lesher, a Colorado pioneer and silver mine owner. He has procured a die, laid in a supply of silver bullion, and manufactured several silver coins, each containing one ounce of pure silver. He calls his coins referendum dollars, because they are to be referred to the people for acceptance or rejection. Mr. Lesher proposes to demonstrate that the intrinsic value theory is a delusion and a snare. His silver at the present quotation costs him 65 cents per ounce, the expense of coining is 15 cents -- 80 cents in all, but he values his dollars at $1.25, and intends to keep them above par. Although he is confident that the silver alone is really worth $1.29 an ounce, he admits that other people may be prejudiced: therefore he promises to pay $1.25 in United States money on demand for each referendum dollar."</em><p>The exact number of Lesher dollars issued is unknown, and Leshers own estimate of 3,500 pieces given to Farran Zerbe in a 1913 interview has been called into question in more recent years. Specifically, Adna G. Wilde, Jr.s exhaustive study of this series led to the conclusion that only 1,869 Lesher dollars of all types were produced. Wildes estimate on the number of Bumstead pieces distributed is 710, comprised of 210 examples of the First Reverse with scrolls, HK-788, represented here, and 500 of the Second Reverse without scrolls, HK-789. Regarding the survivors, the outstanding reference <em>Forgotten Colorado Silver: Joseph Leshers Defiant Coins</em> by Robert D. Leonard, Jr., Kenneth L. Hallenbeck and Adna G., Wilde, Jr. estimates that approximately 600 examples of all types are extant, or only about a third of the total number believed to have been issued. Few can even come close to rivalling the present example in terms of either technical quality or aesthetic appeal.
