We are pleased to be presenting a rarity that will be significant even to the most distinguished of collectors: a Fr. 1166b 1863 $20 Gold Certificate. Early Gold Certificates authorized under the Act of March 3, 1863, found little utility or even need in general circulation as they were used only for customs and in other limited channels such as bullion transfers. Most inevitably were redeemed, and those that had not been culled from circulation were later destroyed.
Today a handful of survivors are known with the bulk of the recorded notes held within institutional collections. Just five are left for collectors, a group that includes four pieces of the $20 denomination and a single Fr. 1166c $100. (That piece, graded Extremely Fine 40 (Apparent) by PCGS Currency sold for $2,115,000 in 2013, accounts for the sole publicly available example of its denomination.)
The $20 featured in our Summer Global Showcase is by far the finest of the publicly available specimens, assigned a grade of About Uncirculated 50 (Details) by PCGS Banknote. It is one of only two $20s available to the public that feature a penned countersignature from the Assistant Treasurer of the United States.
The note displays some professional restorations that were effected along the margins to stabilize it at some point, but this should be immaterial for any collector seeking to join the exclusive club comprising only a handful of collectors at any given time. Opportunities like this are usually few and far between.
You can find this note along with an exceptional assortment of rarities in our upcoming Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction. For more information about our auctions or to consign your numismatic items, please call 800-458-4646 or email [email protected].
