1836 Classic Head Half Eagle. HM-9. Rarity-7. EF-40 (PCGS). <strong>Die Variety: </strong>HM-9. Obverse 7: Easily distinguished from every other obverse die of this issue by a combination of three features: a short 1 and script 8 in the date, and a single forelock curl. Reverse J: A detached upper left serif of an errant U is evident before the primary letter U in UNITED, this being the most prominent diagnostic of this reverse. Both of these dies appear only in the 1836 HM-9 pairing.<p><strong>Die Emission Sequence: </strong>With no known die linkage to any other varieties, the exact position of the 1836 HM-9 pairing in the emission sequence for this series is unknown.<p><strong>Die State: </strong>Apparently from perfect dies, although this coins state of preservation could easily obscure faint breaks on one or both sides.<p><strong>Estimated Surviving Population for the Variety:</strong> Only 10 coins in all grades (per Daryl J. Haynor, 2020), or just 0.5% of extant 1836 Classic Head half eagles.<p><strong>Strike: </strong>The obverse is softly struck overall, the stars lacking radial lines with noticeable bluntness to the high points of Libertys portrait, although the latter is also due to overall light wear. The reverse is better struck and shows crisp detail throughout much of the eagles plumage.<p><strong>Surfaces: </strong>Warmly and evenly patinated in honey-gold, light olive highlights mingle nicely over both sides. Faint traces of luster persist. The surfaces are moderately abraded from use in commerce, although they are free of singularly distracting marks.<p><strong>Commentary: </strong>Surpassing the equally well known 1835 HM-5, the 1836 HM-9 is the rarest die pairing in the entire Classic Head half eagle series of 1834 to 1838. Daryl J. Haynor (2020) relates a dramatic tale about the discovery of this variety:<p><em>"The discovery of this die marriage was made in 1996 by John McCloskey while reviewing Classic Gold coinage at a coin show. As he described it, the first thing he noticed about the discovery coin was that it had a short 1 in the date. That immediately reduced the possible dies known to one, Obverse 6. However, the date was not as widely spaced as the Obverse 6 date, so he bought the coin and took it home for study. It was only then that he realized that the date contained the unique Script 8. The distinguishing feature of the reverse has to be the extra floating serif located to the left of the U in UNITED, which must be the upper serif of an extra U. It is very noticeable and can be seen on the known circulated specimens."</em><p>Since then few others have been confirmed and, although he allows for upward of 10 coins extant, Haynor was aware of only six different specimens when he published his reference on Classic Gold coinage. The present example is the #4 coin in the authors census. Its offering in this sale may represent a once in a lifetime buying opportunity for advanced gold variety collectors.<p>Exactly why so few coins were struck from this unique die pairing has been lost to history. Two of the six examples known show obverse die cracks, although none are apparent on the present specimen, as above. Given the paucity of survivors, and the fact that all are circulated (most grade EF), the terminal states of these dies may never be confirmed. PCGS# 765240. NGC ID: 25RY. PCGS Population (HM-9 attribution only): 1 in all grades. From the Daryl J. Haynor Virginian Collection. The plate coin for the 1836 HM-9 variety in the 2020 Haynor reference on Classic Gold coinage.
