1881 Three-Dollar Gold Piece. MS-63 (PCGS). This lovely example exhibits delicate silver on otherwise dominant deep orange-rose surfaces. Semi-reflective fields are nearly prooflike and support satiny, crisply impressed design elements. Minimally handled for the assigned grade, and just right for another world class three-dollar gold set. With just 500 coins struck for commercial use, the 1881 has the lowest mintage among circulation strike issues of this denomination. The entire mintage was achieved in a single delivery in June or July of that year. Few, if any, saw commercial use, the coins instead remaining as part of bullion reserves until they were eventually destroyed through melting. A small number of examples -- 125 or fewer coins -- were retrieved from banks through the efforts of numismatic dealers such as Thomas L. Elder, who sent circular letters to cashiers and tellers. As related elsewhere in our cataloging for this collection, Elder and others were active in this regard during the early 20th century, and most of the coins they retrieved were lightly circulated. Indeed, the typical 1881 in todays market grades EF or AU. Only two or three dozen Mint State examples have come down to the present day, and they are eagerly sought by series specialists and advanced collectors with an interest in classic U.S. Mint gold rarities. From the Huberman Collection. Earlier ex Kreisberg-Schulmans 10th Anniversary Auction, April 1967, lot 727.
