1897 So-Called Dollar HK-839, AK Souvenir Gold

Coin Details

Description

HK-839 is an Alaska Gold Souvenir from the series of small gold tokens produced between 1897 and 1911 by M.E. Hart (Mary Elizabeth Hart), later sold by Farran Zerbe at the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition. The Alaska Gold Souvenirs (HK-838 through HK-851) are small gold tokens produced between 1897 and 1911, capitalizing on the public fascination with Alaska gold during the Klondike Gold Rush era. Struck in low-karat gold (approximately 14 karat) at a diminutive 13mm diameter, these pieces feature unusual denominations including 'One Pinch' and 'Half Pinch' — references to measuring placer gold dust by pinching it between thumb and forefinger. The Pinch series (1897-1901) displays Indian head designs facing left or right with varying star counts, while the 1911 Parka Head series commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the first gold discovery in Alaska in 1861. These tokens were produced by M.E. Hart (Mary Elizabeth Hart) and later sold by the legendary numismatic promoter Farran Zerbe as part of his 'Coins of the Golden West' set at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. The complete set of 36 pieces, offered in a Tiffany frame, encompassed Alaska pieces plus Minerva Bears, Indian Bears, and souvenir gold tokens from Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Many catalog numbers (HK-839 through HK-849) are known from no surviving examples, making the complete series virtually impossible to assemble. The HK numbering system groups so-called dollars broadly by type: exposition and commemorative pieces in the lower numbers, with monetary, miscellaneous, and later additions in higher ranges. Lettered suffixes (a, b, c, d) typically indicate variant compositions or die states of the same basic design, while entries above HK-900 include pieces added in later catalog supplements.

Rarity Notes

Alaska Souvenir Gold pieces from the 1897 period are scarce to rare, with gold content ensuring that many were eventually melted. The HK-numbered pieces represent the cataloged so-called dollar-sized variants of a much larger family of Alaska gold souvenirs. Gold examples are particularly desirable to collectors of both so-called dollars and Alaska territorial numismatics.

Cross References

HK-839; PCGS #643577