By CoinWeek ….
A gorgeous, lightly toned PCGS Proof-68 example of the popular Type 1 1913 Buffalo Nickel is currently being offered by GreatCollections, with bidding ending on Sunday, April 28.
Issued only in the type’s inaugural year, the Type 1 Buffalo Nickel features sculptor James Earle Fraser’s iconic Indian Head design on the obverse and an American bison or buffalo on the reverse. The main difference between the Type 1 and Type 2 Buffalo Nickels is the “ground” beneath the bison’s feet. On the Type 1, Fraser’s original design has the bison standing on a mound or hill of raised earth. Unfortunately, the denomination FIVE CENTS was superimposed over this higher relief section of the coin and so premature wear was seen in circulated examples within a couple of months after the nickel’s release. Once again, United States Mint Chief Engraver Charles Barber had to alter another artist’s carefully thought-out design to make sure it fulfilled its fundamental reason for existing: serving as a useful medium of exchange. Which a coin could not do if no one could see how much it was worth. Barber carved out the raised earth, creating both a protective exergue for the denomination and a second type for the series.
PCGS has graded 11 examples in PR68, with none finer as of April 22, 2024. They give an estimate of $100,000 USD for a Proof specimen in such a grade, but recent auction results for top pop PCGS-certified Type 1 Buffalo Nickel Proofs hover in the range of $80,000 to $90,000.
At the time of writing, the highest of 28 bids in Sunday’s auction is $10,000 USD.
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To search through GreatCollection’s archive of over 600,000 certified coins and notes the company has sold over the past eight years, please visit the GreatCollections Auction Archives.
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