1880 Proof Four Dollar Pattern - J-1659, Stella Coiled Hair

Coin Details

Auction Record

$76,375 • PR64CA • 08-10-2016 • Heritage Auctions

Description

A copper striking of the Coiled Hair Stella, featuring George T. Morgan's competing obverse design for the four-dollar denomination. Where Barber's Flowing Hair version presents Liberty with long, streaming tresses, Morgan's interpretation gathers Liberty's hair into a tightly braided coil atop her head, creating a more compact and sculptural portrait. The model for Morgan's Coiled Hair design is traditionally identified as Anna Willess Williams, a Philadelphia schoolteacher who also sat for the Morgan silver dollar portrait. The obverse retains the same metric specifications as the Flowing Hair version — 6 G. .3 S. .7 C. 7 GRAMS between the border stars — while the reverse features the identical five-pointed star design with ONE STELLA, 400 CENTS, and the national mottos. In copper, the Coiled Hair design reveals details that are sometimes obscured on the gold strikings: the individual strands of the braided coil, the delicate arrangement of Liberty's hairline, and the crisp definition of the metric numerals between the stars. The 1880 Coiled Hair Stella is among the most celebrated designs in American numismatics, with gold versions regularly commanding seven-figure auction prices.

Rarity Notes

R-7 to R-8. Copper Coiled Hair Stellas from 1880 are exceptionally rare, with fewer than 8 specimens believed known.

Cross References

Judd J-1659, Pollock P-1859