1859-S Liberty Seated Silver Dollar. OC-1. Rarity-2. EF-40 (PCGS). CAC.

Historic 1859-S Silver Dollar Rare CAC Approval 1859-S Liberty Seated Silver Dollar. OC-1. Rarity-2. EF-40 (PCGS). CAC. Wholesome and rare originality in a survivor of this historic issue. Soft powder blue and antique gold undertones backlight olive and mauve-gray patina. Hints of faint mint luster remain to be appreciated at direct viewing angles. The 1859-S is the first San Francisco Mint Liberty Seated dollar and the only one of the No Motto design type. Given its geographic location and excellent natural harbor, it is little wonder that San Francisco became the United States' primary port for trade with the Far East beginning in the 1850s. By 1858, the city was already importing large quantities of silver from Mexico, in the form of both bars and dollar coins, the latter of which were eagerly sought for trade with Chinese merchants, who preferred these coins above all other world crowns of the era. Despite the ready availability of this preferred alternative, Superintendent Charles H. Hempstead raised the subject of silver dollar coinage at the San Francisco Mint in a letter to Mint Director James Ross Snowden on November 18, 1858. The latter's reply came on February 19, 1859, granting permission and enabling the superintendent to meet his primary goal to save time and labor spent in coining Mexican silver into U.S. coins. Under the conditions prevailing at the rustic San Francisco Mint of the 1850s, it cost nearly twice as much to make two half dollars as it did to produce a single silver dollar, and so on down through the lower denominations. Unlike subsidiary silver coins, however, the silver dollar could only be struck at the request of bullion depositors. These brokers, which figured prominently among San Francisco's banks, exchange houses and merchants, had to have a specific need for silver dollars to request them from the Mint. Few of them did, and on even fewer occasions, and in the end only 20,000 coins were struck for this inaugural San Francisco Mint silver dollar issue. The first 15,000 coins delivered in this mintage were intended solely for export, the San Francisco-based firm of Bolton, Barren & Co. acquiring 8,985 for use in the China trade. Fortunately for today's collectors, the final 5,000 pieces delivered by the Mint were retained stateside and released into circulation on the West Coast. Unlike in the East and Midwest, where specie payments were suspended early in the Civil War and remained in abeyance throughout most of the Reconstruction era, gold and silver coins continued to circulate actively in the West during those years. In fact, the West remained on a coin basis for all transactions at least through the end of the 19th century, refusing greenbacks, fractional paper notes and postage stamp currency that supplied the need for small change in the eastern United States. The 1859-S, then, became the first Liberty Seated dollar since the 1850-O to see domestic circulation, and the last before the mintmarked issues of 1870 to 1873. The 500 to 750 coins extant are survivors of this commercial use in the West during the second half of the 19th century, and most are in lower grades through EF, as here, but often impaired, certainly not as here. Premium EF and AU coins with CAC approval are very rare and eagerly sought by advanced silver dollar enthusiasts. Provenance: From a Collection of American Silver Classics. CAC Stickered Population: 28 in all grades. PCGS# 6948. NGC ID: 24YZ. Click here for certification details from PCGS.

Estimation:€0.89

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