What are the 100 Greatest U

“America’s Gobrecht Dollar. A Complex and Mysterious Issue. Part 2”; Robert A. Izydore, North
Carolina Numismatic Association (NCNA) Journal, Vol. 32, Number 3, 6, Convention, 2006.

Judd and PollockVarieties
    The known varieties of Gobrecht dollars can be classified by Judd number attributions which
were formulated by J. Hewlett Judd in his book, United States Pattern Coins-Experimental and
Trial Pieces. The current updated eighth edition was edited by Q. David Bowers and published by
Whitman Publishing, LLC in 2003. Gobrecht dollars can also be classified by Pollock number
attributions which were published in United States Patterns and Related Issues by Andrew W.
Pollock III in 1994. Judd number attributions appear to be more widely used, and these will be
referred to primarily in this article. Judd lists 21 varieties of the Gobrecht dollar which are listed
below. Many of these varieties are illustrated at www.uspatterns.com. This web site is the home of
The Society of U.S. Pattern Collectors, and it is maintained by Andy Lustig and Saul Teichman.

1836
J-58: Obverse has C GOBRECHT F in raised letters in the field between the base of the rock and
         the date; there are no stars in the field. Reverse has the eagle flying onward and upward in
         a field of 13 large and 13 small stars; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / ONE DOLLAR
         appears around the border; struck in silver with a plain edge; found in DA-III and DA-IV.
J-59:   Same as J-58 but struck in copper.
J-60:   Obverse is the same as that on J-58 except C GOBRECHT F appears in recessed letters
         on the base of the rock. Reverse is the same as J-58; struck in silver with a plain edge;
         found in DA-I, DA-II, and DA-IV.
J-61:   Same as J-60 but struck with a reeded edge.
J-62:   Same as J-60 but struck in copper.
J-63:   Obverse is the same as that on J-58. Reverse has no stars in the field (reverse of 1838);
          struck in silver with a plain edge.
J-64:    Same as J-63 but struck in copper.
J-65:    Obverse is the same as that on J-60. Reverse has no stars in the field (reverse of 1838);
          struck in silver with a plain edge.
J-66:    Same as J-65 but struck in copper.

1838
J-84:    Obverse has 13 stars around the border; Gobrecht’s name does not appear. Reverse has
          the flying eagle and no stars; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / ONE DOLLAR appears
          around the border; struck in silver with a reeded edge; found in DA-III and DA-IV.
J-85:    Same as J-84 but has a plain edge
J-86:    Same as J-84 but struck in copper; edge type unknown. This is an unconfirmed variety.
J-87:    Same as J-84 but struck in copper with a plain edge.
J-88:    Obverse is the same as that on J-84. Reverse is the same as that on J-60; struck in silver
          with a plain edge.
J-89:    Same as J-88 but struck in copper.

1839
J-104:   Obverse and reverse are the same as those on J-84; struck in silver with a reeded rdge;
           found in DA-III and DA-IV.
J-105:   Same as J-104 but has a plain edge.
J-106:   Listed but not known to exist.
J-107:   Same as J-104 but struck in copper with a plain edge.
J-108:   Obverse is the same as that on J-104. Reverse is the same as that on J-60; struck in
           silver with a plain edge.
J-109:   Same as J-108 but struck in copper.

The Coinage Act of January 18, 1837
    The Coinage Act of January 18, 1837 was the first comprehensive coinage law passed since
the original coinage laws of 1792 and 1793. It covered all aspects of the operations of the mint and
the regulation of the coins of the United States. The new law is closely intertwined with the
circumstances surrounding the issuance of the Gobrecht dollars. Therefore, it is important to
understand the provisions of this law as they relate to the minting of silver dollars. Silver dollars
produced prior to the new law were minted under the old standard which mandated that they be
struck on 416 grain, 0.8924 fine silver planchets (1 grain equals 0.065 grams). The new coinage
law stipulated that the weight of the silver dollar was to be decreased from 416 grains to 412.5
grains and that the fineness of the silver content was to be increased from 0.8924 fine to 0.900
fine. The total weight of silver in the dollar remained unchanged. The new law also provided that
the weight of any single dollar should not deviate from the standard weight by more than one and a
half grains (0.0975 grams). Section 17 of the coinage law of April 2, 1792 directed that all silver
and gold coins “shall be as nearly as may be, conformable to the several standards and weights
aforesaid,” but no specific deviations in grains were specified. Both the old and the new laws
specified that the date on the coins must correspond to the year in which coins were struck.

Which Coins are Originals, and Which Coins are Restrikes?
    All three dates of the Gobrecht dollars were struck both as originals and as restrikes. The
placement of the known varieties into their proper category has been at issue for over fifty years.
Technically speaking the restrikes are not really coins because they were struck without legal
sanction. However, for simplicity they will be referred to as such herein. All agree that the Judd
varieties that were struck in copper, as fantasy pieces (mules), or with inappropriate edge types
are unauthorized restrikes. The varieties that have been considered to include originals are J-58, J-
60, J-84, and J-104. In an article titled “The Secret History of the Gobrecht Coinages 1836-1840”
which was published in 1954 in the Coin Collectors Journal, Walter Breen wrote that the restrikes
were struck from repolished dies and have wire rims. He contended also that 1836 dated restrikes
show reverse die cracks. In his 1977 encyclopedia on U.S. and colonial proof coins, Breen
changed his view and wrote that the originals have the eagle flying upward, and the restrikes have
the eagle flying level. Robert Julian concluded in an article on Gobrecht dollars that appeared in
Coin World in 1982 that Breen’s later theory was correct. The Breen-Julian theory was accepted
by the numismatic community over the next two decades. In 2000-2003 extensive research carried
out by James Gray and Michael Carboneau (G&C) over the previous eleven years was published
in a series of articles in the Gobrecht Journal (published by the Liberty Seated Collectors Club).
These articles have provided much useful information toward the resolution of the issue of
originals vs. restrikes. Their conclusions are in variance with the Breen-Julian theory. At this time
the numismatic community appears to be embracing the Gray-Carboneau theory, but disagreement
remains. Summarized below is what is known about each of these varieties along with the findings
and conclusions of Gray and Carboneau concerning them.

1836 Name Below BASE, J-58 (P-61)
      Mint records show that J-58 dies were made in October or November, 1836. Breen lists the
obverse die as the fourth obverse die (see discussion under J-60 below). Eighteen originals were
reported to have been struck. This number has been used in the Guide Book of U.S. Coins as well
as by noted numismatic authors including Breen, Julian, Judd, Adams and Woodlin. The first
known auction sale of a J-58 dollar was held in 1859 by Edward Cogan. Standard numismatic
theory states that several of these coins were circulated in Philadelphia, and negative comments
concerning the prominent appearance of Gobrecht’s name on the obverse were printed in
newspapers. As a result of this criticism a new obverse die was engraved to relocate the name to
the base in smaller letters. G&C were not able to find any critical newspaper articles published in
Philadelphia or any major city of the day to support this theory. It is now known that a letter
published by Edward Cogan in 1867 in the American Journal of Numismatics is the source of the
standard theory. It is probably not a coincidence the first known sale of a J-58 dollar occurred at
the time when the underground operations at the mint began.

    J-58 originals would be in DA-I and struck on 416 grain, 0.8924 fine silver planchets with a
perfect uncracked reverse die. No J-58 dollars are known in DA-I. Only coins in DA-III and DA-IV
are known. The DA-III dollars have moderate to heavy reverse die cracks, and the DA-IV dollars
have faint to moderate reverse die cracks around the letters. It is also known that J-60 DA-III
dollars (see below) have the same reverse die cracks. All J-58 coins weighed by G&C or others
weighed near 412.5 grains which indicated that they were struck after 1836.

    Fifteen J-58 dollars have appeared at auction. Twelve were in DA-III and three were in DA-IV.
All but one were assigned grades between PR61-PR66. One example of DA-III was graded PR45.
Interestingly it has no reverse die cracks. It is not known if the die cracks are worn off or if they
were ever present. Even though J-58 dies were made, there is no evidence that J-58 coins were
actually struck in 1836. It is also of interest that no J-58 coins resided in the U.S. Mint Cabinet
(now part of the Smithsonian collection) which was established in 1838. It is logical that at least
one J-58 coin would have been included in this collection if the coins had been struck. It is
apparent that the dies prepared for the J-58 coins cracked during storage for over 20 years. They
were then used to strike dollars in DA-III and DA-IV.

Conclusions for J-58 Gobrecht Dollars
    All known J-58 dollars are fantasy pieces. There is no evidence that any original J-58 dollars
were actually struck. It is likely that after the J-58 dies were prepared, a decision was made at the
mint to move Gobrecht’s name from below the base of the rock to a less conspicuous place. An
obverse die for J-60 coins was then prepared.

1836 Name on BASE, J-60 (P-65)
    Two uniface splashers struck on white metal (a soft alloy of lead, tin and antimony and backed
by paper) of the obverse design were made on January 8, 1836 and sent to Secretary of the
Treasury Levi Woodbury and President Andrew Jackson in Washington for inspection and
suggestions. Two revised impressions were submitted to Mr. Woodbury on January 14 and again
on April 9. A final impression was submitted on June 18. Breen lists the dies used to strike the
January, April and June impressions as the first, second, and third obverse dies, respectively. On
April 9 drawings of Gobrecht’s flying eagle design for the reverse were also submitted. Approval of
both the obverse strikings and drawings for the reverse design was given on April 11. An
impression from the reverse die was sent to Secretary Woodbury on August 25, and it was
approved on August 27. According to Breen the final working dies (fifth obverse and second
reverse) were not prepared until December, 1836. Seven uniface splashers are currently known.
These include six of the obverse design and one of the reverse design. The splasher of the
reverse design is a copper restrike. Two others (one obverse and one reverse) have been
reported, but their existence is unconfirmed. Three of the obverse splashers reside in the holdings
of the Library Company of Philadelphia. The two remaining have been sold at auction and are
privately held. One of them (J-A1836-5) shows Gobrecht’s name on the base. It is believed to
have been struck in from the fifth obverse die in December, 1836. This die was used to strike the
original issues of the J-60 coins.

    One thousand Gobrecht dollars were struck in December, 1836. These coins are known as the
original issue. Four hundred coins out of the original issue were kept at the mint for presentation
purposes. The remaining 600 coins went to the Bank of the United States to be placed into
circulation. An additional 600 coins were struck in March, 1837. These also went into circulation.
These coins are known as the second original issue. A single pair of dies was involved in striking
both issues. Most J-60 coins show a tiny reverse die line above the eagle’s top wing pointing to the
AT in STATES. The few that do not are believed to be early struck coins from the first original
issue. All researchers agree that the issue of December, 1836 was struck in DA-I. This conclusion
is reinforced by the fact that the J-60 dollar that resides in the Smithonian Institution is in DA-I. It is
the identity of the coins from the second original issue that are in dispute. Gray and Carboneau
believe that these coins are the ones that exist in a medal turn. Proponents of the Breen-Julian
theory believe that the second original issue coins were struck in DA-I and that the coins in medal
a turn are restrikes. A summary of the G&C findings follows in Part 3.

                                                                                                     Part 3 appears in the next issue.