By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
After a two-year hiatus, the New Orleans Mint resumed production of Liberty Head Quarter Eagles in 1850. The Philadelphia Mint shipped four new obverses to New Orleans for the 1850 issue, with reverse dies being reused from previous years.
| New Orleans Mint Coin Production in 1850 | |||
| 1850-O Liberty Seated Half Dime | 690,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Seated Dime | 510,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Seated Quarter Dollar | 412,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Seated Half Dollar | 2,456,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Seated Dollar | 40,000 | ||
| 1850-O Gold Dollar | 14,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle | 84,000 | ||
| 1850-O Liberty Head Eagle | 57,500 | ||
In terms of rarity, the 1850-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle is middle-of-the-road for New Orleans Mint issues but is quite scarce, with a handful of coins reported at MS64 and only one of those appearing recently at auction. Gold coin expert Doug Winter points out in Gold Coins of the New Orleans Mint: 1839-1909, that the 1850-O is among the hardest O-Mint dates to find with sharp strikes. Even on the sharpest strikes we have reviewed, softness on the eagle is the norm. We have seen above-average obverse strikes with full star radials and a clearly impressed LIBERTY on the diadem that would invariably be paired with reverses that harbored weak eagles.
Doug Winter has also identified four varieties for the date.
* * *
Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens
We have noted several coins that have upgraded in our Noteworthy Specimens list.
Top Population: PCGS MS64 (2, 8/2024), NGC MS64 (2, 8/2024), and CAC MS64 (2:0 stickered:holdered, 8/2024).
- NGC MS64 #8210946-003: As NGC MS63+ #5913111-001. Heritage Auctions, January 22, 2021, Lot 4569 – $26,400; Heritage Auctions, February 9, 2023, Lot 3790 – $16,800. AS NGC MS64 #8210946-003. Heritage Auctions, August 14, 2024, Lot 4284 – View. Upgraded by 1/2 point. Variety 4. Obverse lamination at 7 o’clock at the rim.
- PCGS MS64 CAC #36092142: Paramount, August 1977; Stack’s. As PCGS MS63 CAC #14526841. “The A.J. Vanderbilt Collection,” Stack’s Bowers, March 22, 2018, Lot 10306 – $31,200. Since this sale, this coin has upgraded to MS63+ CAC and then to MS64 CAC. Die clash image near lip. Long diagonal die line under bun. Cluster of shallow hits in obverse field under stars 4 and 5. Two ticks below star 9. On the reverse, field disturbances under ED of UNITED. Small cluster of hits under STATES.
- PCGS MS64: As PCGS MS62 #4439783. Heritage Auctions, November 16, 2001, Lot 6278 – $9,487.50. Since this sale, the coin has upgraded to PCGS MS64, per Doug Winter. Thin diagonal marks from neck to star 1. Reflective area between stars 3 and 4. On the reverse, tick below second S of STATES. softly struck.
- PCGS MS63+ CAC #40460208: As PCGS MS63 CAC #06636381. Heritage Auctions, October 29, 2010, Lot 4618 – $16,100. As PCGS MS63+ CAC #06636381. Legend / Morphy Auctions, July 2013, Lot 292 – $18,400; Lafitte Collection; Legend Rare Coin Auctions, June 19, 2020 – July 16, 2020, Lot 486 – Passed. Upgraded by 1/2 point. CAC-retained. Since this sale, the coin has been recertified. On the obverse, thin diagonal cut in the field to the left of stars 11 and 12. On the reverse, there is a copper spot and red discoloration at denticles at 5 o’clock.
- PCGS MS63: Discovered in Europe by Marc Emory; Heritage Rare Coin Galleries to Dr. Richard Appel, 1989 – $13,500; Dr. Richard Appell to Ronald W. Brown; “The Acadiana Collection,” Heritage Auctions, August 13, 1999, Lot 7852 – $19,550.
* * *
1850-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle Coin Specifications
| Country: | United States of America |
| Year of Issue: | 1850 |
| Denomination: | Two Dollars and Fifty Cents (USD) |
| Mintmark: | O (New Orleans) |
| Mintage: | 84,000 |
| Alloy: | .900 Gold, .100 Copper |
| Weight: | 4.18 g |
| Diameter: | 18.00 mm |
| Edge: | Reeded |
| OBV Designer: | Christian Gobrecht |
| REV Designer: | Christian Gobrecht |
| Quality: | Business Strike |
* * *
