1849 Moran & Clark Ten Dollar - Copper, K-1

Coin Details

Description

The 1849 Moran & Clark Ten Dollar piece in copper is an off-metal specimen from one of the most obscure partnerships in the California territorial gold series. Very little documentary evidence survives regarding the firm of Moran & Clark, and what is known comes primarily from the coins themselves and scattered contemporary references. The partnership was a brief enterprise during the chaotic early months of 1849, when dozens of individuals and firms attempted to profit from the desperate need for coined money in the California goldfields. This copper specimen bears the ten dollar denomination and the names of the two partners, providing the primary evidence for the firm's existence and coinage activities. As an off-metal striking, it was not intended for circulation as a ten dollar coin but rather served as a die trial, pattern, or a later restrike. The Kagin catalog assigns this the K-1 designation for the copper ten dollar type. The Moran & Clark coinage represents the most ephemeral tier of California territorial gold operations: firms that existed just long enough to produce a small number of coins or trials before circumstances ended their coinage activities. Whether the firm failed commercially, exhausted its gold supply, or simply found more profitable pursuits in the booming goldfield economy, the surviving copper specimens are among the rarest artifacts of early California private coinage.

Rarity Notes

Exceedingly rare, unique in copper. Moran & Clark pieces of any metal are among the scarcest of all California territorial gold issues.

Cross References

NGC ID 31321; Kagin K-1 (Copper); see also gold eagle die trial under same base