1861 Clark, Gruber & Co. Two-and-a-Half Dollar Die Trial - K-9, Copper, Plain Edge

Coin Details

Auction Record

$9,775 MS64 09-22-2010 Heritage Auctions

Description

This copper die trial from Clark, Gruber & Company preserves the dies of their 1861 quarter eagle ($2.50 gold coin) in a base metal striking. Clark Gruber was the most prominent private minting firm of the Pikes Peak Gold Rush, operating out of Denver City from 1860 to 1862. Austin M. Clark, Milton E. Clark, and Emanuel H. Gruber established their banking and coinage operation to serve miners and merchants who needed coined money in a region hundreds of miles from the nearest government mint. Their 1861 coinage featured redesigned dies that replaced the original Pikes Peak mountain motif with a Liberty Head portrait modeled after federal coinage, lending their products a more official appearance. The Kagin-9 designation places this among the quarter eagle varieties, the smallest denomination Clark Gruber produced. The plain edge on this copper die trial distinguishes it from the reeded edges found on the firm's gold production strikes. Copper die trials allowed the coiners to verify die quality and alignment without consuming expensive gold planchets — a practical consideration for a frontier operation where every ounce of gold represented significant value. The federal government purchased the Clark Gruber facility in 1862 for $25,000, eventually converting it into the United States Assay Office in Denver, the forerunner of the Denver Mint.

Rarity Notes

Extremely rare. Copper die trials from Clark Gruber are virtually undocumented in commerce; the firm's gold quarter eagles themselves are major territorial rarities with fewer than two dozen known across all varieties.

Cross References

Kagin-9