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Pleasing Near-Mint State 1795 Ten Dollar AU58 NGC
The year 1795 marked the introduction of America’s first gold coinage: the eagle, or ten dollar coin, and the half eagle. By relative standards, the production of 1795-dated tens was large at 5,583 pieces. However—as with many early gold issues—much of the mintage was destroyed. In 1834, the government reduced the weight of the new gold coin issues so that the face value was more than the intrinsic bullion value. This was done to discourage melting and exportation. As such, the older, heavier coins were melted to be coined into the new quarter and half eagles. Those examples that managed to escape the melting pots often found their home in bezels and other forms of jewelry, or were simply cleaned and otherwise poorly handled. Pleasing, problem-free examples such as this near-Mint State offering are difficult to locate as the demand for America’s first gold coin always exceeds the supply. Trends value in AU55 (three points lower) is $80,000.
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History
