Our Winter Baltimore sales are well-known for their exceptional selections of colonial and early American issues. However, they also include impressive rarities from many other series of United States coinage. Included in our November 2019 Official Auction of the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo is an incredible Superb Gem 1863 three-dollar gold piece certified MS-67 by NGC.
The 1863 $3 is similar in both absolute and high grade rarity to the 1861 and 1862 issues, as all have mintages under 6,000 pieces. Only 300 or so examples of the 1863 are believed extant, most of which are EF and AU coins retrieved from bank reserves during the early 20th century. Rarely seen are Mint State survivors, as fewer examples of the 1863 were deliberately saved than those of the more highly regarded low mintage issues from the 1880s.
Writing in the 2005 reference The United States $3 Gold Pieces: 1854-1889, Q. David Bowers and Douglas Winter account for as few as 30 Uncirculated coins. By way of comparison, the authors estimate that around 150 Mint State examples of the 1880 have survived from a far lower mintage of 1,000 circulation strikes. For the astute gold collector who recognizes the 1863 as an underappreciated rarity in Mint State, our offering of this lovely Superb Gem represents a significant bidding opportunity.
Stack’s Bowers Galleries has extensive experience handling examples of this Civil War-era rarity. We offered one of the very finest examples known in Part III of the Pogue Collection in February 2016. Certified MS-68 by PCGS, it earned an astounding $123,375. More recently, an example certified MS-64 by PCGS earned $16,800 in our August 2019 ANA Auction.
This MS-67 (NGC) 1863 $3 is a significant highlight of our Official Auction of the 2019 Whitman Coin & Collectibles Winter Expo. The sale will be available for viewing and bidding on our website www.StacksBowers.com, or you may contact our offices to secure a printed catalog. To feature your collection alongside this important rarity, speak with a numismatic representative today at 800-566-2580 or email [email protected]. Also, download our mobile app to view and participate in our auctions via your Android or Apple device.
