What are the 100 Greatest U

“What are the 100 Greatest U.S. Coins,” Robert A. Izydore, The Gobrecht Journal, published by
the Liberty Seated Collectors Club, Volume 30 Issue #89, 12-15, March, 2004.

In Issue #88 of the journal Weimar White described the Liberty Seated coins in the book 100
Greatest U.S. Coins by Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth. This interesting book contains nice
photographs of the listed coins and includes some good background information on each of them.
The Numismatic Literary Guild and the Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) both chose this
book as their best numismatic book for 2003. The top 20 coins were ranked by 84 PNG members
while the remaining 80 were ranked by the authors. The PNG members were given a list of the top
100 greatest coins and asked to rank them. The members had the option of adding any coins to
the list that they thought should be included. White’s summary stated that the concept of greatness
was based on the factors of rarity, value, quality, popularity, beauty and history. It was nice to see
that the authors ranked 16 Liberty Seated coins among the 100 greatest U.S. coins in their book.
The top three ranked coins were the 1804 silver dollar, the 1913 Liberty Head nickel, and the 1933
double eagle, respectively.

White pointed out that greatness is a subjective quality, and I wholeheartedly agree. However, as I
look at the coins ranked at the top of the list, it is apparent that these are the coins that sell for the
highest prices at auction and in private sales. In other words the rank given to a coin was heavily
skewed by its value. An argument can be made that this is reasonable. If a coin is rare, popular,
and attractive enough, it can be classified as great, and its price can be said to be a barometer of
its greatness. However, value is not the only measure of greatness. It is also true that historical
significance and impact make something or someone great. George Washington and Abraham
Lincoln are great because of their roles in the establishment and preservation of our country at a
time of national crisis. There is no monetary value involved. Industrialists such as Andrew Carnegie
and Henry Ford made a lot of money, but that is not why they are great. They are great because
their achievement in their respective industries changed the landscape of America and the lifestyle
of its citizens. The paintings of Pablo Picasso are great because they represent the development
of the painting style called cubism that pioneered the modern art movement. They are expensive,
but their price is not the primary reason for their greatness.

Given the fact that the three coins at the top of the greatest 100 list satisfy the requirements of
rarity, value and popularity, let’s examine their historical significance and impact. For many years it
was believed that the 1804 silver dollar was actually minted in 1804. Its reputation and popularity
as a true numismatic rarity grew on that belief. It was crowned the King of American Coins by Fort
Worth dealer B. Max Mehl in the early part of the 20th century and even earlier by the Chapman
brothers. As such these coins were coveted by those numismatists who could afford to own one.
Since 1962 we have known that these dollars were not minted until three decades after 1804.
They are not genuine coins in the usual sense. The eight Class I dollars were struck from new dies
in 1834-1835 at the request of the Department of State to be included in presentation sets, two of
which were presented as gifts to the rulers of Muscat and Siam. The Class II and Class III restrikes
from the 1850s were illegally made by mint employees and sold to collectors. The Class I dollars
have some historical significance in that two of them were presented to foreign rulers. The Class II
and Class III coins have no real historical significance. None of the 1804 dollars had any historical
impact on the development of coinage in America. The five known 1913 Liberty Head nickels
became famous as rarities in the 1930s as a result of advertisements placed by B. Max Mehl
offering to buy them. These nickels were believed to be authentic by the public. It is now known
that they were struck without legal authorization by one or more mint employees and that they were
not authorized U.S. coins. They too had no historic impact on the development of U.S. coinage.
The 1933 double eagles were struck as legal U.S. coins before they were ordered melted by the
government under Presidential order #6260. A few were removed from the mint in some way, but
most were eventually seized by the Treasury Department. Only the King Farouk specimen and
those in the Smithsonian Institution are known to have survived. They are historically significant in
that they represent the last regular issue gold coins minted in the United States.

When I first read that a book had been published that listed the 100 greatest U.S. coins, I took
some time to consider what the top ranked coins might be. My choices were made largely on the
basis of my perception of their historical significance and impact. It was my feeling that the three
greatest coins were the 1793 chain cent, the 1794 silver dollar and the 1836 Judd-60 Gobrecht
dollar. I felt confident that these coins would be ranked in the top five or six coins in the book and
certainly in the top ten. The 1793 chain cent was America’s first coin having the unit value of 1 cent
or 1/100 dollar, and since it was minted earlier in the year than the 1793 half cent, it was the first
regular issue coin to be minted. It was also the first U.S. copper coin. The 1794 silver dollar
represents the nation’s first one dollar denomination coin which is the basic unit of our coinage. It
along with the 1794 half dime and half dollar represent the first regular issue silver coins. These
were also the first regular issue coins depicting the image of Liberty whose image would remain on
circulating U.S. coins until the 1930s. The 1793 chain cent and the 1794 silver dollar both had very
low mintages and both are rare. The chain cent was minted for less than a year and the flowing
hair dollar was minted for only two years. However, these two coins are ranked 15 and 20,
respectively, in the book.

The 1836 Judd-60 Gobrecht silver dollar is a true classic among U.S. coins. Christian Gobrecht’s
flying eagle design is truly majestic. It was the first silver dollar coin to be minted in 33 years, the
first coin to depart from the Liberty head design, and one of the first coins to be struck on the mint’s
new steam presses. Gobrecht dollars are very unusual in that they were minted with brilliant proof
finishes and then placed into circulation. Most importantly the Gobrecht dollar was the first coin to
feature the Liberty Seated design that was to dominate U.S. silver coinage for the next 55 years. It
has a very low mintage, and it is rare. This coin is highly prized by collectors. It was quite
surprising that the PNG dealers did not include it in their top 20 choices of the 100 greatest U.S.
coins. It was even more surprising that the authors of the book placed it as low as 69th on their list.
What were they thinking? Twelve Liberty Seated coins were rated higher than the Gobrecht dollar
but none of them can be rated higher in terms of historical significance and impact. All twelve of the
higher rated coins have higher listed values, while two of the three lower rated coins have lower
listed values. The proof 1884 and 1885 Trade Dollars are clandestine issues and the proof 1866
No Motto quarter, half dollar and silver dollar are fantasy coins. However, they are all rated higher
than the 1836 Gobrecht dollar. I would like to believe that the price of the 1836 Judd-60 Gobrecht
dollar will eventually rise relative to the other listed Liberty Seated coins as its historical
significance becomes more appreciated by collectors.

There are many rare U.S. coins that were not legally authorized. Most of them were made at the
mint for sale to collectors years after their indicated date. The 1804 silver dollar and the 1913
Liberty Head nickel are just two examples of these unauthorized coins. Some Gobrecht dollars also
fall into this category. They include dollars struck in copper, 1836 name below base restrikes, 1838
restrikes and 1838 and 1839 dated coins with stars on both the obverse and reverse. These
unauthorized coins have been well publicized in the collecting community and at times this
information has reached the general public. This publicity has probably been good for the hobby
because of the attention it as drawn. Publicity increases the desirability of the coins to collectors
and investors, and creates avid competition to own them. Their prices are high, and they are
considered great coins despite their dubious origin. But do they really deserve to be considered
great? They have little historic significance and have had little or no impact on true U.S. coinage.
Should they really be classified as coins at all? A better title for the book might be 100 Most
Famous U.S. Coins.

Many collectors and most investors are probably not aware of the true background for some of the
high priced U.S. coins. Even though this information is now available, many people have either not
read it or are unaware of it. When I first read in A Guide Book of United States Coins that certain
coins were restrikes, I did not really understand the true meaning of that term until some time later.
The phrase “made at the mint to sell to collectors” does not give the full story either. The Guide
Book states that the proof 1866 No Motto quarter and half dollar are unique and that there are two
known examples of the proof 1866 No Motto silver dollar. There is a statement indicating that the
proof 1866 No Motto quarter and the proof 1884 and 1885 Trade Dollars were not issued for
circulation, but there is no mention that these coins are fantasy or clandestine issues. It appears
that the true history of these coins tends to be glossed over in the Guide Book and some other
publications. Some auction catalogs incorrectly refer to them as restrikes. Individuals and firms that
sell these coins have a responsibility to inform potential customers of their origin. The customers
can then better decide how much they wish to pay for them. This is not always done. It can be
argued that collectors who are willing to pay high prices to purchase these coins must surely know
about their origin, but this might not be the case when authoritatively written auction descriptions
do not accurately describe their background. To their credit, the authors of the 100 greatest coins
book identify those coins that were struck without legal authorization.

The role that publicity plays in determining the value of a coin cannot be over emphasized. Most of
the publicity these coins receive presents them in a positive light that promotes even higher prices.
The high ranking awarded by PNG dealers to the top rated coins in the book is additional publicity
that serves to validate and preserve the status quo. If people were unaware of their price histories,
I believe it is unlikely that they would choose the 1804 dollar, the 1913 Liberty Head nickel, and the
1933 double eagle as the three greatest U.S. coins.

It would be interesting to see what coins would be rated among the 100 greatest coins if collectors
were asked to compile the list. The general numismatic community might not perceive greatness
the same as professional numismatists. It would also be better if a starting list of 100 coins was not
provided. The participating PNG dealers and the authors of the book undoubtedly gave their best
effort and they probably should not be faulted for their value oriented thinking. As an enthusiastic
collector of Liberty Seated coins I might assign more historic significance to the 1836 Judd-60
Gobrecht dollar than does a collector of another series. I believe that coins such as the 1792 half
disme, the 1796 and 1797 half dollars, the 1856 Flying Eagle cent, and some of the early gold
rarities also deserve consideration for the highest ranking. What then are the 100 greatest U.S.
coins? This question can never be answered to everyone’s satisfaction because of the subjectivity
involved. However, it is an intriguing question to ponder.

References
1.   Walter H. Breen, “Walter Breen’s Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins”,
  Doubleday, 1988.
2.   Professional Coin Grading Service(PCGS) website: www.pcgs.com/coinguide/guiide.chtml.
3.   J. Hewitt Judd, “United States Pattern Coins, Experimental and Trial Pieces”, Q. David Bowers
  editor, Whitman Publishing, 2003.
4.   R.S. Yeoman, “A Guide Book of United States Coins”, Kenneth Bressett, editor, Whitman
  Publishing, 53rd Edition, 2000.
5.   Gerald Tebben, “Reading the Numbers” Coin World, January 19, 2004.