1870-CC Liberty Head Double Eagle. EF-45 (PCGS). CAC. <p>Offered is an uncommonly high grade, aesthetically pleasing example of one of the most eagerly sought issues in the entire double eagle series of 1849 to 1933. In addition to being the rarest Carson City Mint double eagle, the 1870-CC is also the most difficult to obtain with strong eye appeal. The obverse is always softly impressed to one degree or another, especially at stars 1 to 7 and the high points of Libertys portrait. The present example, while showing little of the detail to the stars around the obverse periphery, is uncommonly bold throughout Libertys portrait. The central reverse also offers bold to sharp definition and, while a tad soft from 1 to 4 oclock, the periphery shows a fully legible legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and denomination TWENTY D.</p><p>The typical 1870-CC is very heavily abraded, often with numerous large, detracting marks, which should be expected for an early CC-Mint issue that served as a workhorse in commerce. The offered coin is once again an unexpected and pleasant exception. We see no more than a few sizable marks that are easily forgiven, and no detracting hairlines, the in hand appearance remarkably smooth for an 1870-CC twenty. Retaining faint traces of the original mint finish, this coin offers exceptional eye appeal for the assigned grade, which is also well above average for a survivor of this notoriously challenging issue.</p><p>The double eagle is the fourth denomination produced by the fledgling Carson City Mint in 1870, following silver dollars, eagles and half eagles. The mintage is just 3,789 pieces, which Rusty Goe (<em>The Confident Carson City Coin Collector</em>, 2020) divides into five monthly deliveries:</p><p>-March = 1,332 coins</p><p>-April = 398 coins</p><p>-May = 1,137 coins</p><p>-June = 462 coins</p><p>-August = 460 coins</p><p>This is the lowest yearly production figure among the 19 double eagle issues attributed to this rustic frontier coinage facility. Since there was no contemporary numismatic interest in this issue, it entered commercial channels and suffered the expected high rate of attrition. It should come as no surprise that the 1870-CC is not only the rarest Carson City Mint double eagle, as above, but also one of the rarest in the entire Liberty Head series. It is every bit as desirable as the fabled 1854-O and 1856-O duo, the low mintage 1881, 1882, 1885, 1886 and 1891 circulation strikes, and the intriguing 1861-S A.C. Paquet Reverse -- perhaps even more so, since no other coinage facility in U.S. history is as storied or romanticized as that which operated at Carson City from 1870 to 1893.</p><p>The rarity of the 1870-CC has long been established, and to this day it remains part of that select group of condition rarities within the U.S. series which are unknown in Mint State. Recent survival estimates put forth by numismatic researchers have been fairly tight, ranging from a low of 35 to 45 coins from Douglas Winter in the 2001 reference <em>Gold Coins of the Carson City Mint</em>, to a high of 55 to 65 coins proffered by Rusty Goe in his aforementioned book <em>The Confident Carson City Coin Collector</em>. Other sources have advanced similar estimates during the opening decades of the 21st century:</p><p>- Q. David Bowers, <em>A Guide Book of Double Eagle Gold Coins</em>, 2004 = fewer than 50 coins</p><p>-Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth, <em>Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins: 1795-1933</em>, 2008 edition = 35 to 50 coins</p><p>-<em>PCGS CoinFacts</em> = 40 to 50 coins</p><p>The ownership of any 1870-CC is a mark of distinction for a numismatist, so much more so when the coin obtained is attractively original and problem free, as here. Among the most aesthetically pleasing examples that we have offered for this challenging issue over the years, this piece is worthy of serious bidder consideration. It is sure to sell for a strong bid to an astute Carson City Mint and/or double eagle enthusiast.</p><p>Ranked #75 in the fifth edition (2019) of the influential reference <em>100 Greatest U.S. Coins</em> by Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth.</p> From the Fairmont Collection-Hendricks Set.
