South Australia. British Colony - Victoria gold "Adelaide" Pound 1852 MS61 NGC, KM2, Fr-3, Rennik-pg. 21, McDonald-pg. 41. Type II reverse with dentilated/crenellated inner border. A rare and highly sought-after type issued by the Government Assay Office in Adelaide, a town of clear importance owing largely to its close proximity to nearby gold fields. Though the initial mintage of such pieces numbered around 25,000, a substantial quantity were melted down, as their gold value surpassed their face value, and relatively few survivors remain today. Mint State examples are even harder to come by, and this brilliant specimen indisputably falls within that tier. Toned to a pleasing reddish-gold, the surfaces exhibit only gentle and evenly scattered friction, with lightness of detail at the uppermost regions of the raised designs attributable to a strike by dies in a later stage, as opposed to any actual wear. Lustrous and visually compelling, this Mint State offering deserves only the closest collector consideration.

HID09801242017

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