Longacre’s
Proof Three Dollar Gold 1854 to 1889: In 1851 a law
was passed that authorized a three cent piece and also made
the postage rate three cents. Two years later a new law was
passed authorizing a light weight silver three cent coinage
and three dollar gold coin. Evidently lawmakers believed that
the gold coin would be useful to buy rolls of three cent coins
and sheets of stamps. It’s closeness to the quarter
eagle, which was widely used, made the denomination somewhat
illogical, and the public proved indifferent to them.
James Longacre designed the three dollar
gold coin using an Indian Princess motif. He had to create
a motif that would be distinctly different from the quarter
and half eagle coronet designs. The design, similar to his
Gold Dollar Large Head, shows a Caucasian Liberty facing left
wearing a stylized headdress. Inscribed on the headband is
LIBERTY. She is surrounded by the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
In using the Indian Princess motif, Longacre felt that he
was designing something that was uniquely American rather
than an adoption from the classics. The reverse shows an open
wreath of corn, cotton, wheat, and tobacco tied at the bottom
with a bow. The denomination 3 appears at the top center of
the wreath, with DOLLARS and the date below within the wreath.
Longacre liked the wreath design so much that he adopted it
for use on the small cent of 1856.
In 1854 the first and largest mintage was
produced. Many were saved as souvenirs. Others briefly circulated
and ended up being used for jewelry. Only 1854 had smaller
letters in DOLLARS. The other dates all have large letters
for the denomination. Mintages were limited after 1854. For
many dates in the series, proofs were made; however, because
they were either spent or mishandled many are extremely rare.
The dates 1865, 1873, and 1875 were also proof restrikes.
The 1875 and 1876 coins were proof only issues with no regular
coins for those dates.
The 1873 issue had two varieties, an open
3, which was the original, and a closed 3. In 1872 dies with
closed 3 were made for all denominations. Chief Coiner Snowden
complained that the 3 could easily be taken for an 8. New
dies were prepared with open 3’s. However, an original
gold proof set had a three dollar gold coin with an open 3,
unlike any other denomination. There are also closed 3’s
know for proofs of this date. Proof restrikes are rarer than
the original, especially those that have a convex obverse
and a concave reverse.
Although not listed in the “Red Book”
A Guide Book of United States Coins, the early proof coins
of this series were struck for interested government officials
and a few collectors who could obtain them from Mint employees.
They did not go on sale to the general public until 1858,
when 20 or 30 were made. Of these, 6 have been certified by
both grading services. The total estimated mintage for proof
three dollar gold pieces is 2,060. Both grading services have
a combined total number of 1770 for them.
The highest proof mintage is 291 in 1888
and the lowest is 20 in 1874 and 1875. A useful way to examine
proof mintage of this era is to look at the population reports
of the two grading services. Keeping in mind that the numbers
are high because of resubmissions and crack outs, the number
of early date proofs is very low. Of the 80 proofs struck
in 1859, only 17 are certified in both services. Of the 119
proofs of 1860, 23 have been reported by the grading services
and 13 of 113 from 1861. It appears that most of the 1860
and 1861 proofs were melted. By the middle of the Civil War
the number of proofs dropped because in order to obtain proof
coins, one had to pay as much as twice the face value in paper
money. The other way to get proofs was to pay with gold coins
at face value and pay a fee in addition. Of the 25 minted
in 1865, both services report 18 with 1 restrike. The 1875
is extremely rare because it is also, as noted above, a proof
only mintage. It has 20 reported for both services. From the
late 1870’s to the end of the series, the mintages tended
to rise to a high of 291 in 1888, as indicated above. Then
they dropped off to 129 in the last year.
An excellent example of the three dollar
proof is the 1886. It has an original mintage of 142. In its
population report for this date PCGS shows 2 in PR62 Cameo
with 17 better.
