1859 Double Eagle Die Trial - J-A1859-10

Coin Details

Auction Record

$19,975 MS64 01-06-2016 Heritage Auctions

Description

This die trial of an 1859 Liberty Head double eagle was produced to verify the dies for the largest regular-issue gold denomination in the American coinage system. The twenty-dollar gold piece was the Mint's premier gold coin, struck in massive quantities to serve international trade and domestic high-value transactions. The 1859 Philadelphia mintage of 43,597 double eagles was relatively modest compared to some years, but the San Francisco Mint produced an additional 636,445 pieces, reflecting the continuing importance of California gold in fueling the nation's money supply. The obverse features James Barton Longacre's Liberty Head portrait wearing a coronet, surrounded by thirteen stars and the date 1859. The reverse displays the heraldic eagle with "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" above and "TWENTY D." below. Each double eagle contained nearly an ounce of gold (0.9675 troy ounces), making die failures extremely costly — a cracked or damaged die could ruin dozens of valuable gold planchets before being detected during production. Die trials were therefore an essential safeguard for the double eagle denomination, and the Judd-A1859-10 designation indicates this was one of multiple test impressions taken from the 1859 dies. The year 1859 was historically significant beyond coinage: the discovery of the Comstock Lode in Nevada was about to transform American mining and monetary policy, and John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in October foreshadowed the approaching Civil War.

Rarity Notes

Very rare. Die trials of the double eagle denomination are scarce for any year; J-A1859-10 is known in only one to three specimens.

Cross References

Judd-A1859-10