1881-O Liberty Head Eagle. Winter-1, the only known dies. AU-55+ (PCGS). CAC.Rich reddish-rose and orange-honey in color with significant prooflike reflectivity in the fields. Uniformly sharp, remarkably attractive, and with no sizable marks, this coin is a premium quality Choice AU 1881-O eagle. After the Civil War, the New Orleans Mint did not resume production of the eagle until 1879, and then only in modest quantities. All three of the New Orleans Mint eagles dated 1880 to 1882 are important rarities. The 1881-O is the most elusive issue in this group, and it ranks third in both absolute and high grade rarity among the 16 O-Mint eagles of the Motto type. At the time of striking, collecting coins by mintmark had not yet taken off, therefore very little numismatic notice was paid to this issue. Once the 1881-O eagle found an audience, Mint State examples were generally unavailable, making it a significant condition rarity. The present example is one of perhaps only 275 to 325 coins extant in all grades (per Doug Winter, 2020). Mint State survivors number fewer than 10 coins, and this newcomer from the Fairmont Collection is among the finest realistically obtainable by most collectors.PCGS# 8693. NGC ID: 265Y.PCGS Population: 1; 26 finer, 11 of which are Mint State (MS-61 finest).<p>CAC Population: 9 in all AU grades.From the Fairmont Collection - CAG Set.
