Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States - A Complete Encyclopedia

Q. David Bowers

Back Next

Chapter 4: Early Dollars, Guide to Collecting and Investing

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100

1797 [BB-72] B-2. 9x7 Stars, small letters. Choice EF, exceptional strike: Reverse characteristically weakly struck. $4,000.00.

1797 [BB-73] B-1a. Draped Bust.Stars arranged 9 left and 7 right large letters. EF. $1,400.00.

1798 [BB-82] B-1a. Small Eagle reverse. large letters. EF. $1,000.00.

1798 [BB-95] B-6. Heraldic Eagle. 10 arrows and two headless sticks. EF. $525.00.

1798 [BB-105] B-23. Heraldic Eagle. 13 arrows. Unc. Some minor marks visible with a glass. $2,300.00.

1798 [BB-113] B-27. Close Date. Final digit 8 high. BU, sharply struck. A gem coin. $9,750.00.

1798 [BB-113] B-27. Heraldic Eagle. VF-EF. Small weak area on reverse as struck. $500.00.

1798 [BB-124] B-25. Heraldic Eagle. EF. $800.00.

1798 [BB-125] B-24a. Heraldic Eagle. Crack through 12th star to border, prominent break from die stem to milling on reverse. EF. $575.00.

1799/8 [BB-142] B-1. 13 Reverse Stars. AU, small planchet flaw at right side border. $550.00.

1799 [BB-154] B-18. Unc. Very minor rubbing. $2,000.00.

1799 [BB-156] B-7. VF, cleaned. $300.00.

1799. [BB-158] B-16. EF-AD. $1,111.00.

1799 [BB-158] B-16. EF. $525.00.

1799 [BB-159] B-23. Stars 8x5. EF. $780.00.

1799 [BB-160] B-12b. Hairline breaks. VF-EF. $400.00.

1799 [BB-161] B-1la. EF. $850.00.

1799 [BB-166] B-9a. Brilliant Unc. $2,500.00.

1799 [BB-166] B-9a. EF-AU. $880.00.

1799 [BB·169] B-21. AU. $900.00.

1800 [BB-189] B-5. EF. $600.00.

1800 [BB-192] B-19. AMERICAI variety. AU, carelessly cleaned long ago. $1,400.00.

1800 [BB-193] B-18. EF. $750.00.

1800 [BB-195] B-15. 10 arrows on reverse. Unc., some evidence of rubbing. $2,200.00.

1801 [BB-211] B-1. EF. $700.00.

1801 [BB-213] B-3. BU, some rubbing. $3,000.00.

1802/1 [BB-232] B-4. Close overdate. EF-AU. '$725.00.

1802/1 [BB-232] B-4. EF-AD. $875.00.

1802 [BB-241] B-6. Choice BU. Very minor marks visible with glass. $3,200.00.

1802 [BB-241] B-6. Close Date. AU. $2,000.00.

Superior Stamp & Coin Company's ANA Convention Sale, August 19-23, 1975, contained an outstanding listing of early dollars, a number of which had been sold two years before in the same firm's Gilhousen Collection Sale. Most of these were owned earlier by Mr. and Mrs. AJ. Ostheimer, 3rd, who for much of the previous 15-year period had endeavored to build a truly memorable collection of early dollars. Cataloging was by Jon Hanson.

1794 [BB-1] Flowing Hair. From Superior's Charles L. Ruby Part I sale, Lot 1446: Intermediate die state, dies clashed but as yet without the rim break at 7th star. VF, steel gray tone; usual strike, weak at left stars and UNITED STATES, but at least all digits and stars can be made out, as can at least lower halves of all letters affected; complete dentilated border on reverse. Adjustment marks at left obverse; small planchet chip in wing feathers near ER, as made. Tiny sharp rim nick above space between AM. (The mark within U is a tiny lamination defect.) Minute rim nick above first upright of N of UNITED. $11,000.00.

1794 [BB-1] Another, similar die state, but differently struck. VF-20 or so; dull gray tone, usual strike, but border sharpness and the stars on the left on this example are much superior to that of the preceding. Without any adjustment marks, but there are some obverse handling marks and a few faint pin-scratches around and below LIB of LIBERTY. Remarkably clean and pleasing reverse, just weak at and around OF. $9,500.00.

1795 [BB-11] B-3. Two leaves. R-5. Close Date, 5 recut. Reverse with 16 berries, eight on each side (only variety of year so). VF-35, well tarnished, faint iridescent tone, and with traces of very old cleaning. Well centered with bold hair detail, but there are a few tiny center reverse adjustment marks and the obverse shows plenty of light handling marks. $2,000.00.

1795 [BB-12] B-11. R-8. VF-20, slight rainbow tone and very clean. Struck a little weak at right obverse border as usual. $1,600.00.

1795 [BB-13] B-9. Two leaves. R-4. Close Date obverse, same as Bolender's 3 and 11; reverse of B-4. EF-40, heavily toned gray and iridescent. Well centered and struck. One pinprick right of eagle's neck and one above Liberty. Condition Census and rare so fine. $2,600.00.

1795 [BB-13] B-9a. Obverse die partly flattened and roughened by severe clash marks from the reverse, parts of the wings and wreath being very plain behind the head. VF-30 or better for this miserably struck coin. Mostly gray in color, but