The King of Morgan Dollars Is Back. and This Gem 1893-S Has an Eliasberg Pedigree
One of the most important Morgan dollars still in private hands has returned to the United States.
GreatCollections will offer the Clapp-Eliasberg 1893-S Morgan Dollar in an unreserved auction that closes Sunday, August 9, 2026. PCGS graded the coin MS-65, while CAC approved it with a green sticker.
Collectors have long called the 1893-S the “King of Morgan Dollars.” However, this example offers far more than a famous date. It also carries a remarkable pedigree that reaches back to 1893.
Moreover, leading Morgan dollar specialists widely regard it as one of the finest surviving examples. Many place it second only to the celebrated Vermeule specimen.
A Landmark Morgan Dollar Returns From Overseas
The Clapp-Eliasberg coin has spent roughly a decade overseas. During that period, it served as the centerpiece of an advanced Morgan dollar collection, according to GreatCollections.
Now, it returns during a period of intense competition for elite Morgan dollars.
GreatCollections lists the coin as PCGS MS-65 with CAC approval. The auction company also identifies it as the second-finest-known 1893-S, behind the Vermeule coin graded PCGS MS-67 CAC.
GreatCollections sold that MS-67 example for $2,086,875 in August 2021. The result set an auction record for the Morgan dollar series. It also marked the first public auction sale of a Morgan dollar above $2 million.
The present coin last appeared at public auction in October 2014. At that sale, it realized $646,250. At the time, the result established an auction record for an 1893-S Morgan Dollar.
Why Collectors Call the 1893-S the King
The San Francisco Mint struck only 100,000 Morgan dollars in 1893. That figure represents the lowest business-strike mintage in the entire Morgan dollar series. PCGS confirms the mintage, along with the coin’s standard weight of 26.73 grams and its composition of 90% silver and 10% copper.
By comparison, the Philadelphia Mint produced 110,000 Morgan dollars in 1894. Meanwhile, the New Orleans Mint struck 300,000 examples of the 1893-O.
However, the original mintage tells only part of the story.
The Panic of 1893 disrupted banks, railroads, businesses, and silver interests across the country. At the same time, most 1893-S dollars entered commercial channels rather than remaining in Treasury storage. Therefore, surviving coins often show extensive wear.
Later government melting likely reduced the supply further. Yet no major Treasury hoard of 1893-S dollars ever transformed the market, as happened with several Carson City issues.
As a result, the 1893-S remains scarce in every collectible grade. More importantly, it becomes exceptionally rare in Mint State.
Fewer Than 10 True Gems May Survive
PCGS CoinFacts estimates that approximately 9,948 examples survive across all grades. Numismatic author Q. David Bowers has placed the likely total between 6,000 and 12,000 coins.
The Mint State population drops sharply.
PCGS estimates 123 Mint State survivors and 18 coins at MS-65 or finer. However, grading totals may include resubmissions of the same coins. Therefore, those figures do not necessarily represent 18 different Gem examples.
PCGS founder David Hall has argued that only six or seven distinct coins may truly qualify as MS-65 or finer. He also described the 1893-S as the rarest Morgan dollar in Mint State.
That distinction separates the 1893-S from many other famous Morgan dollar rarities.
Some dates remain available in lower circulated grades but become rare only in Gem condition. In contrast, the 1893-S challenges collectors at every level. Even heavily worn examples command strong demand. Mint State coins rank among the great prizes of the series.
A Pedigree Documented to 1893
The Clapp-Eliasberg coin carries a documented ownership history that begins with Philadelphia coin dealer J. Colvin Randall in 1893.
J.M. Clapp acquired the coin in 1894. It then remained in the Clapp family collection for nearly half a century.
In 1942, Baltimore financier Louis E. Eliasberg Sr. purchased the Clapp Collection intact. That acquisition played a central role in Eliasberg’s creation of the only collection generally recognized as having contained every United States coin by date, mint, and major variety known to collectors at the time.
The coin remained in the Eliasberg Collection until the landmark 1997 auction of his silver coins. It then passed through the Stellar Collection, the Sunnywood Collection, and the holdings of collector Bob Simpson.
GreatCollections lists the complete modern pedigree as J. Colvin Randall, J.M. Clapp, Louis E. Eliasberg, Stellar, Sunnywood, Simpson, and the Wizard of Oz Collection.
In addition, Jeff Garrett selected the coin for illustration in 100 Greatest U.S. Coins.
Original Color Sets This 1893-S Apart
Grade alone does not explain this coin’s reputation.
The Clapp-Eliasberg specimen displays natural multicolored toning, strong underlying luster, and relatively clean surfaces. CAC’s green sticker confirms that the company found the coin solid or premium for its assigned PCGS grade.
Nevertheless, the Clapp-Eliasberg coin combines several qualities that rarely appear together. It offers Gem preservation, CAC approval, original color, a famous pedigree, and more than a century of documented numismatic history.
Ian Russell Calls the Coin a Long-Sought Prize
“In more than a decade of handling great Morgan dollars, this is one of the coins I have most wanted to bring to market,” said GreatCollections President Ian Russell.
“The 1893-S is the King of the series, and an original Gem carrying a Clapp and Eliasberg pedigree—CAC-approved and considered the second finest known—is about as good as this series gets. A special thank you for entrusting it with our firm.”
The auction carries no reserve. Therefore, the highest bidder will purchase the coin when bidding closes.
That structure could produce another major test for the upper end of the Morgan dollar market. The coin’s $646,250 result from 2014 provides one benchmark. The $2,086,875 Vermeule sale from 2021 provides another.
Still, this auction will stand on its own.
The market has not seen the Clapp-Eliasberg 1893-S at public auction for nearly 12 years. Moreover, collectors may wait many more years before another Gem 1893-S with a comparable pedigree becomes available.
Bidding Ends August 9
Bidding for the 1893-S Morgan Dollar PCGS MS-65 CAC closes Sunday, August 9, 2026. GreatCollections lists the scheduled closing time as 6:39 p.m. Pacific Time. The coin will sell without reserve.
Collectors can view the coin, review its current bidding status, and place bids through the GreatCollections website.
GreatCollections serves as the official auction house of the American Numismatic Association. The Irvine, California, company specializes in certified coins and banknotes.
Since its founding in 2010, the firm reports that it has auctioned more than 1.8 million certified coins with a combined value exceeding $1.5 billion.
For Morgan dollar collectors, however, one lot will command most of the attention.
The King has returned. This time, it carries the names Clapp and Eliasberg.
Selling a kidney.
She’s a beaut!
The Morgan’s are the most beautiful coins ever minted!
You think this one is for the books?