A visually interesting type, using the Small Head motif intended for a $10 coin, the 1855 Wass, Molitor $20 has always seen active collector interest. They were issued early in 1855 during a cessation of production at the San Francisco Mint, serving the local populace as an economic safety valve ensuring enough circulating gold coinage in the still-growing city. The issue was the swan song of both the firm, which dissolved the next year, and the era of California private minters, as the mint was soon off and running again with their production of gold coins.

Wass, Molitor's coins were widely circulated at the time because of their trustworthy weight and fineness. As such, few are known in high grade and we have never encountered one without its share of marks. This issue has variously been called Rarity-6 and Rarity-5+ over the years, or somewhere over or under a pivot point of 30 specimens known, though most are probably VF or EF in quality.

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in the August 2011 Chicago ANA Auction, where it realized $69,000.