Walter Breen
Eagle. [69] Similar to B-3; low date, slanting up, base of 1 double punched. The rarest denomination of the date, probably under 40 surviving. Compare Schulman-Kreisberg, February 1960: 2819; Golden II: 2164, which mayor may not be a reappearance of the same piece; Atwater, DiBello:1135; Ullmer:504 ("tiny blemish before face"), $3,100; Garrett:529 at $3800. Not often seen in the bourse display cases.
Double Eagle. [76] Low date slanting up. Rarer than 1896 but unappreciated. Not as often seen as some other dates in the nineties, but usually nicked up, e.g. Garrett:528 at $6250. Compare Wolfson:969, which may be a reappearance of Baldenhofer: 1585; DiBello :1295; LM3/67:487, gem. All these are white - er, golden -elephants and there have been, so far, fewer collectors than coins available.
Gold proof sets. Not more than 69 could be made, as that was the mintage of eagles; 65 would be a more likely number. Garrett's totalled $13,850. No other records for any four-piece sets unless indeed one was represented by the Wolfson coins.
Complete proof sets. Same comment as to 1894.
1898
Cent. [1795] No notable peculiarities. Very much like earlier dates in the decade; the date looks too wide for proper proportion to devices. There may be minuscule positional varieties.
Five Cents. [1795] Normal date, ANS and most others. Available in almost any color desired; most often available in unnatural white with scrub marks. - Final 8 exceptionally heavy and in higher relief than 189, probably cut over another digit. Very rare. Hirt:1120 (Pine Tree 11/75).
- Recut date, the logotype twice punched in imperfect alignment. NN 51: 479. Very rare, less than six seen.
Minor proof sets. [1795] Same comment as to 1892.
Some of these were floating around as late as the mid fifties.
Dime. [735] Normal date, without recutting. Identical comment as to the nickel.
- "Overdate." Part of another digit slants up to r. within lower loop of final 8. "Gilhousen" :494.
Quarter. [735] No special peculiarities. Same comment.
Half Dollar. [735] Ditto. It is now very seldom that one is offered that has not been cleaned.
Silver Dollar. [735] Ditto, only worse. VAM 2. Silver proof sets. [735] Same comment as to 1897. Except for Garrett:323 at $2,600, no records for original sets traceable to the mint recent enough to quote.
Quarter Eagle. [165] Date well to r. Rarer than its mintage suggests, and quite a few are damaged. Record undamaged, Ullmer: 391, $1,600; Garrett: 535, $1,500.
Half Eagle. [75] Low date. very rare and seldom offered; a sleeping golden elephant. Record $3,750 in Ullmer, trailed by $2,300 in Garrett: 534.
Eagle. [67] *B-4. Low date slanting up to r., left base of 1 r. of center, last white stripe partly filled. Same comment only doubled. Wolfson's was badly cleaned and therefore slept on; Delp:813 was hairlined, possibly ex S 5/68: 865; Ullmer: 505 brought $7,250; Garrett: 533 remained somnolent at $4,200, as did Breen 11:280 at the same figure. Cf. Kern:530.
Double Eagle. [75] *Low date placed too far r.; left base of 1 minutely r. of left edge of dentil; rev. line slants down to r., grazing r. point of 6th star (in upper row). This is one of the low mintage Philadelphia dates which has latelybegun to stimulate date collector pressure. There are about enough proofs to satisfy the blue chip specialists, though. Auction record $7,250 in Garrett: 532. Not too many have lately shown up in the bourses. Possibly 3D-odd survive, including the really badly nicked Ones and the hairlined pieces such as S 5/68:868, or QS 9/73 reappearing as Hirt:1731, etc. Cf. Kem:618.
Gold proof sets. Probably not more than 64 or 65 minted. Garrett's was dispersed, totalling $15,250; no others lately offered. Cf. Ten Eyck:339.
Complete proof sets. As in 1894. I saw one offered about 1952 allegedly as original but am not prepared to swear that it actually was.
1899
Cent. [2031] Normal date only. There may be minute positional variants. Record $160, Garrett coll.
Five Cents. [2031] Normal date only; same comment. Often with lovely blue tone, or at least this used to be true.
Minor proof sets. [2031] As in 1898. Several times in the late 1950's I had opportunities to buy sets in envelopes labeled by former owners as having come directly from the Mint. These normally showed golden to brown toning on the nickels and irregular toning on cents.
Dime. [846] Normal date only. No special peculiarities.
Quarter. [846] Same comment. Too often available only cleaned.
Half Dollar. [846] There may be as many as three minute positional variants; one with minute recutting on base of 1 (1974 GENA: 1653). Uncleaned ones are the exception and deserve to be cherished.
Silver Dollar. [846] Ditto, VAM 1, hollow below M, open 9's. Records a little higher than for other dates in this period (except 1904) owing to vigorous speculator activity in uncirculated pieces. One may be charitable and say that the speculators' squirreling of the latter has forced date collectors to seek proofs - or perhaps more realistic and guess that here, as before, the date collectors have continued to regard proofs erroneously as a sort of super-unc, grade and bid them up accordingly.