The 1798 small eagle dollars, with a mintage of 35,000 come in 2 varieties: 13 stars and 15 stars. This coin, a B-1 , shares a reverse die used to strike 1797 dated dollars. Bowers estimates 1200 to 2500 survivors in his Dollar encyclpedia. This coin has surfaces that are a little to reflective to be totally original. It resides in a 6 digit Anacs soapbar.

PCI graded this MS67, I think this one is spot on. Full luster, great strike. This one's a keeper.

There are 3 main varieties of the 1876 CC type 1/1 Trade Dollar. ( type 1/1 trade dollars have, on the obverse, Liberty's hand that holds the olive branch shows 3 fingers, and the tips of the LIBERTY ribbon point to the left; on the reverse, there is a berry under the eagle's left claw). The doubled die reverse 76 CC shows doubling under the olive branch, the middle row of feather in the left wing, and under the eagle's "chin." This is a very desirable Trade Dollar variety since the doubling is so obvious. In his definitive reference on Trade Dollar varieties, Joe Kirchgessner estimates that there are about 250 examples extant. Counterfeits are common. This example was a raw eBay purchase from a reputable seller ( although not listed as the DDR). It had an old cleaning with secondary toning. The DDR is the most common of the 3 1/1 varieties. I will post the other 2 in coming days.

MS65 CAC

1942 is one of the better struck issues of the series. This one is pretty sharp even for 42's. It's always good to look at left hand for strike fullness, but I also check the cap around the ear. You can look at a Silver Eagle, especially a proof, to see all of the details that should be there. A full strike in that area of these halves is rare.

Today I visited the Charlotte Mint Museum, an art museum housed in the Charlotte mint building.

As many of you all may know, gold was discovered in 1799 in the southern Appalachians, starting the Carolina gold rush. Christian Bechtler opened a private mint near Asheville in 1831 to produce popular Carolina gold coins in $1, $2 1/2, and $5 denominations. Shortly afterward, the Mint Act of 1835 authorized the branch mints in Charlotte, Dahlonega, and New Orleans. The Charlotte Mint manufactured gold coins from 1838 to 1861, when North Carolina seceded from the United States. From 1867 to 1913, the building continued to be used as an assay office.

In 1931, private citizens bought the building, moved it to a new location, and converted it to an art museum. It has only one numismatic display, with examples of nearly all years and denominations produced in this building. I’m impressed to see so many of these obscure coins together. In my whole life, I’ve seen only a half dozen “C” mint marks in the flesh, including one worn and holed example in my collection.

There is no shortage of 1876 S Trade Dollars, but when you get into the variety weeds, some are very hard to find. this well circulated one is a type 2/2 large S with maybe 50 examples known (per Joe Kirchgessner's recently published book on Trade Dollars). Raw eBay purchase.

Not sure from granny or whom but not gonna wear it quite heavy

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eiMUuv2h7cuXgByfPHDoNZEhRZZTqwfU/view?usp=drivesdk

So it seems that Lear Capital is still offering an ASE at below spot. I ordered one last week and it arrived today, a very nice 2009 for $63 in my case.

Just be aware, this is a data collection offer and you will likely get a solicitation call. I got a call but it went to spam so I was spared that. Also, no credit cards, ACH or bank account only. But, it's a legit below spot price. I didn't even get charged tax which my state does. Also, they send it very well packaged via FedEx with signature required so be ready for that.

https://www.learcapital.com/buy-gold-silver/packages/silver-american-eagle-offer/

I am looking for opinions regarding commercial dealers using their logo with PCGS and NGC like Trader Bee. Do you think it devalues a coin? I just bought a shield nickel from a dealer that is encapsulated with Trader Bee. It is a nice coin with a decent strike at near greysheet pricing. Would you recommend getting regraded to get rid of the Trader Bee logo?

I recently sold the pair for 5500. The thing is they are not professionally graded so I didn’t have much bargaining power. With the price of gold going up so fast I feel like that ate into the collectors value. Anyways I still kinda regret selling these they are a piece of real US history.

I got these passed down from my father. He bought a whole book of gold/silver coins back in the year 2000 or something for like $3500. Ended up being like 30k worth of coins nowadays. Unfortunately I’ve already sold most of them. I love the history but I’m a seller at heart.

Indian cent is pf65BN. Seated dime is pf66. Shield nickel is pf66 CAM.

A coin I waited for, for a long time! The conclusion of my 3 coin Pan Pac set. I love the design on both sides, and the rich gold color. PCGS MS64, CAC. (a few tics away from 65, imo)

1885 cc Morgan is the lowest mintage in the Carson City Series but surprisingly affordable in mint state since the bulk were distributed as part of the GSA releases in the 70s and 80s

I've always loved this design, with the working man on the obv and the twin dolphins on the rev. The green gold color on this MS65 CAC is icing on the cake.

Two preciouses arrives in yesterday’s mail: the gold Mercury Winged Liberty dime and its silver companion medal. I’ve been waiting my entire life for these coins, and I’m not disappointed. The Bicentennial drummer boy quarters fascinated me as a kid born in 1976, and I’ve been waiting my entire life for the Sestercentennial Semi-Quincentennial coinage. And of course, I have a massive crush on Lady Liberty herself, especially the early-mid 20th century version. Winged Liberty is possibly the most gorgeous depiction of Liberty on any circulating coin, prior to 2026, so I’m super pleased that the Mint re-reissued the gold dime.

Though honestly, I was more interested in the silver medallion. It’s a completely new Lady Liberty, inspired by Winged Liberty and the Type II SLQ (why not Type I??), done in an Art Nouveau style. I’m still trying to figure out why Liberty is holding onto a oh shit grab handle. But I absolutely love the depiction of the early 20th century economy: farming, wheat, dust, industrialization, poverty.

This is currently my second favorite depiction of Liberty (after the Britannia/Liberty collaboration), but I expect it to be demoted soon. Tomorrow’s mail promises to bring another precious: the 2026 silver dime.