1854-O Coronet Double Eagle
NGC Graded AU 58

The 1854-O double eagle is a tremendous rarity today, with no more than 25-30 examples known in all grades. Even some of the most notable collections of the past have lacked this elusive issue. To date, no uncirculated pieces have been confirmed, and VF-XF is the typical grade range for this important Double Eagle.

By the mid-1830s, westward expansion coupled with a gold rush in the Appalachian Mountains had begun to stretch the small supply of money in the Southern United States to its limit. In 1835, public outcry prompted Congress to pass legislation establishing a trio of Branch Mints in the South. The longest-lived of these, the United States Branch Mint at New Orleans, would begin striking coinage in 1838.

Prior to the Civil War, New Orleans was a major port of entry for gold and silver bullion from Latin America; it also received much of the newly mined gold coming from California. For several years, much of this bullion was converted to coin at the New Orleans Branch Mint. In April of 1854, a mint was established at San Francisco, allowing California gold to be coined almost as soon as it left the ground. As a consequence, deposits of gold at the New Orleans Mint dropped, and only 3,250 double eagles were struck there in 1854, among the lowest mintages recorded for 'O' Mint twenties.

The remarkable quality of the specimen presented here is thus a banner headline in American numismatics. Having been recovered just recently from the wreck of S.S. Republic, it is previously unknown to the hobby and uncounted in any census. Its great rarity as a date, combined with its historic provenance, assures that it will receive a wealth of attention from the collecting community.

Numismatic Conservation Services and Numismatic Guaranty Corporation have been awarded the exclusive contract to conserve and grade the thousands of coins being recovered from the 1865 shipwreck of S. S. Republic. These gold and silver coins are being brought to the surface by Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc. of Tampa, Florida. Some of the highlights from this ongoing operation are featured here to showcase the work performed by NCS to professionally conserve these treasures and by NGC to certify and encapsulate them for longterm preservation.

CONSULT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT COINS AND THE WRECK OF THE S.S. REPUBLIC::

shipwreck.net
www.ngccoin.com
www.ncscoin.com
www.kagins.com
www.money.org