traditionalname

“Traditional Name Should Remain,” Robert A. Izydore; Coin World, May 31, 2004.

The following is the original version of the above reference which was edited by Coin
World.

In the March 29 issue an article on Gobrecht dollars by William T. Gibbs appeared as the Coin
Values feature. It was titled “New name needed?” The answer in short is no. Mr. Gibbs contends
that since others such as Philadelphia artists Thomas Sully and Titan Peale, chief engraver
William Kneass (before his incapacitating stroke), and Mint Director Robert Patterson had input
into the design of the dollar coin, credit for the design should be shared with these individuals. He
also contends that it is neither fair nor completely accurate to name the coin after Gobrecht. For
the sake of accuracy he proposes that the coin be renamed the Seated Liberty, Flying Eagle
dollar. In actuality calling the coin by this new name would give none of the above individuals
credit for the design. The idea of disassociating Gobrecht from the name of the coin appears to be
another instance of the political correctness which permeates our society. After all we don’t want
to slight anybody by giving credit to only one individual. This might tarnish the image of others
who might have contributed. If they were still living, they might not feel good about themselves,
and their self esteem might suffer.
If I go to an artist and ask him/her to paint for me pictures of an eagle in flight and a seated woman
who is looking over her right shoulder, I would not expect for my name to be signed on the
paintings, even if I had presented some concept drawings. It is appropriate for the artist to have
his/her name on the paintings. That is that way that things are done. The sketches for the
obverse by Sully are rather crude compared to the final design executed by Gobrecht. Peale’s
sketches for the reverse show an eagle holding both an olive branch and arrows. A large model of
the Peale design was made in bronze and adopted in 1838 to a pattern half dollar. Not only was
this image not used on the dollar coin, but the beauty and majesty of Gobrecht’s flying eagle far
outstrips that of Peale’s design. Walter Breen states in his Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial
Coins that Peale used the Mint’s pet eagle “Old Pete” as a model for his sketches. The eagle had
died as a result of an accident in the Mint, and he was subsequently stuffed and put on display
there. Perhaps “Old Pete” should be given more credit also. Gobrecht as engraver had the
responsibility to produce a design that would not only have beauty and artistic merit but also allow
for it to strike up properly on planchets when minted. He was the chief player in formulating the
design and engraving it into dies. Mr. Gibbs pointed out that unlike Gobrecht, George Morgan
deserves to have his dollar named after him because the design was his alone. However, it is true
that Morgan also used a model for his obverse design. It was also pointed out that Patterson
originally conceived of a Seated Liberty design based on Britain’s allegorical icon, Britannia. He
even sent Sully British coins and medals to study. If we are going to be so intent on being fair,
shouldn’t we also give the designer of Britannia credit for the design of the Gobrecht dollar?
At the heart of the matter though is the fact that the 1836 dated Judd-60 Gobrecht dollars are
authorized coins and not patterns. It is now well known that in December, 1836 and in March,
1837 warrants were signed by Mint Director Patterson for delivery of the coins. The coins left the
Coiner and went to the Bank of the United States for public circulation. Walter Breen has written
that in December, 1839 three hundred 1839 dated dollars were delivered by the Coiner, and some
of these went into circulation. The Judd 60 dollars have Gobrecht’s name on the base of the rock.
It is apparent then that Patterson approved the presence of Gobrecht’s name on the coin. If the
Mint Director thought that it was appropriate for Gobrect to be credited on the coin for the design,
then there is no need to second guess him now. Based on the references and research that he
cited, Mr. Gibbs is undoubtedly aware that the Judd 60 dollars are actual coins which were
released for circulation. However, he pretends that he does not know this by stating that it is not
possible to know for sure whether the coins were intended for circulation or whether all are
patterns. Admission of their true status would have hurt his argument.
The real reason that collectors began to refer to the 1836-1839 dated dollar coins as Gobrecht
dollars is because Gobrecht’s name is on the 1836 dollar. Mr. Gibbs apparently agrees with this
assessment. It was logical for collectors to call the coins Gobrecht Dollars. The issue of who
designed the coins has really not been a significant factor in the choice of the name. I submit that
if Gobrecht’s name had been included on the 1840 and later dated dollars of the Gobrecht design,
these dollars would also be known as Gobrecht dollars and not Liberty Seated dollars. If his name
had been included on the lower Liberty Seated denominations, we would have Gobrecht half
dollars, Gobrecht quarters, etc.
Traditionally the designation Liberty Seated has been used for Gobrecht series of coins. This
designation has been used by the Guidebook of United States Coins, the Liberty Seated
Collectors Club, the Coin Dealer Newsletter, and others. Whether this designation is
grammatically correct or not, I will let others decide. Coin World uses Seated Liberty to designate
these coins. It should be pointed out that the Liberty Seated Collectors Club is well aware of the
contributions of Sully, Peale, Patterson, and others to the Liberty Seated design, and it has
acknowledged them in its publication, the Gobrecht Journal.
It is unfortunate that the main purpose of the article on Gobrecht dollars was to promote a name
change for them and not to inform readers of more of the key features of these rare and interesting
coins. For example, the Gobrecht dollars were minted in both coin alignment and medal
alignment. In fact they are known in two coin alignments, two medal alignments and some
intermediate alignments depending on what angle the eagle flies relative to the design on the
obverse. On some coins the eagle flies upward, and on others the eagle flies level. Which
alignments are from the original issues and which are from restrikes has been debated, but
research done in recent years has revealed much useful information towards resolution of this
issue. The Gobrecht dollars are unusual in that they were struck as proofs but released into
circulation. The letters in LIBERTY on the obverse ribbon are raised and not incuse as on the
other issues of Liberty Seated coins except for the twenty cent piece. The edges of the 1836
dollars are plain, but that does not imply that they may not have been intended for circulation as
was suggested. The circulating twenty cent pieces of 1875-76 and later proof issues also have
plain edges. In addition to unauthorized restrikes that were struck in the 1850's and later, a
number of fantasy pieces were made. One is shown in the March 29 issue. Although these
fantasy pieces were not legally struck, they sell for high prices because they are very rare.
There will be much more written about these fascinating coins in the future. I hope that further
discussion of a name change for them is not included.