1880 Proof Dollar Pattern - J-1645

Coin Details

Auction Record

$18,000 PR66 02-03-2019 Heritage Auctions

Description

The first of the 1880 goloid metric dollar patterns, J-1645 reprises William Barber's coronet Liberty obverse from the 1878-1879 goloid metric series, now dated 1880 under the supervision of his son Charles, who had assumed the Chief Engraver position following William's death in August 1879. The obverse depicts Liberty facing left wearing a coronet inscribed LIBERTY, her hair adorned with ears of wheat, cotton leaves, and bolls, with E PLURIBUS UNUM above and thirteen stars at the border. The reverse bears the goloid metric formula — 15.3 G. / 236.7 S. / 28 C. / 14 GRAMS — centered within a ring of thirty-eight stars representing the states, surrounded by UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, GOLOID METRIC DOLLAR, DEO EST GLORIA, and 100 CENTS. Struck in the goloid alloy itself (approximately 5.46% gold, 84.54% silver, and 10% copper), this pattern tested Dr. Wheeler W. Hubbell's patented composition that was intended to prevent counterfeiting by making the alloy difficult to replicate outside the Mint. By 1880, congressional interest in the goloid concept was waning, and these strikings represent the final chapter of an ambitious but ultimately unsuccessful monetary experiment.

Rarity Notes

R-7. Extremely rare, with an estimated 4-10 specimens survive. The 1880-dated goloid strikings are scarcer than their 1879 counterparts.

Cross References

Judd J-1645, Pollock P-1845