1849 Templeton Reid Twenty Five Dollar Gold Piece - K-2 Copper Restrike

Coin Details

Description

The 1849 Templeton Reid Twenty Five Dollar Gold Piece, K-2 Copper Restrike, is a copper striking from the original dies used to produce Templeton Reid's unique California gold twenty-five dollar piece. Cataloged as Kagin K-2 within the California Templeton Reid series, this restrike demonstrates that the original dies survived beyond their initial use and were later employed to produce specimen impressions in base metal. Copper restrikes of territorial gold coins serve an important numismatic purpose, allowing collectors and researchers to study the die work and design details of coins that are otherwise unobtainable in their original gold composition. The original 1849 $25 gold piece is unique and was stolen from the U.S. Mint Cabinet Collection in 1858, making this copper restrike the only surviving representation of Reid’s extraordinary California twenty-five dollar issue available for study, making this copper restrike the only avenue for private collectors to own an example of Reid's extraordinary California twenty-five dollar issue. The restrike faithfully reproduces the original design: "CALIFORNIA GOLD" with the date 1849 on the obverse, and "TWENTY FIVE DOLS." with "TEMPLETON REID / ASSAYER" on the reverse. While struck in copper rather than gold, the piece carries significant historical importance as evidence of the dies' survival and the continued interest in Reid's coins among nineteenth-century numismatists. The timing and circumstances of the restriking are not definitively documented but occurred in the mid-to-late nineteenth century.

Rarity Notes

Copper restrike from original dies. Extremely rare — exact population undocumented. The original gold $25 piece is unique (Smithsonian).

Cross References

Kagin K-2 (California series); PCGS #525658; NGC #31062