Excelsior Copper
1787 Excelsior Copper. W-5795. Rarity-6+. Indian / New York Arms. EF Details--Environmental Damage (PCGS).
100.31 grains. Charcoal-gray and brown with fine surface granularity akin to burial patina or fire scale. Some raised metal specks on the obverse are consistent with heat exposure, mostly scattered around the lower half of the obverse. The sharpness is excellent on both sides; centering is typical with a few denticles visible in the upper right obverse. One of the classic rarities of the Confederation era, with the distinctive Standing Indian design and his accompanying motto LIBER NATUS LIBERTATEM DEFENDO or "Born free, I defend freedom." This issue is thought to have been coined as a pattern in one of the efforts to land a state coinage contract from New York; no state contract was ever awarded. John Ford extensively researched this issue and kept a careful census of it; he counted a dozen specimens, though it is difficult to tell which of his entries (if any) matches up with this one. Ford did note that Mrs. Norweb owned a "VG, corroded" specimen, but no such coin ever turned up in the Norweb sales. Did Mrs. Norweb spin it off to Ted Craige via their mutual favorite dealer Richard Picker in the hopes of getting a better one someday? Or did Ford simply see one somewhere and misremember where he saw it? Ford's own piece sold for just $63,250 in 2004, a seeming bargain considering Garrett's brought $21,000 hammer in 1979. Either Garrett's or Ford's would be a six-figure coin today. This one represents a somewhat different price point that should be very attractive to most collectors who seek an example of this famous rarity. Mr. Craige priced this example at $2,500 circa 1970.
PCGS# 436.
From our sale of the Ted L. Craige Collection, November 2013 Baltimore Auction, lot 314; Heritage's Chicago ANA Signature Auction of August 2019, lot 3652.
Estimate: $20000