Lot 1527
1879 PCGS Slabbed 8-Piece Proof Set. Grades and denominations are as follows: 1¢: PR65RB Pop 83; 42 finer, 3CN: PR67CAM Pop 37; 1 finer in 68, 1879/8 5¢: PR66 Pop 109; 33 finer, 10¢: PR67 Pop 9; none finer at PCGS, 25¢: PR64 Pop 79; 49 finer, 50¢: PR66 Pop 13; 1 finer in 67, T$1: PR66 Pop 20; 5 finer in 67, and $1: PR65 Pop 16; 19 finer. Mintage information as follows: 1¢, 3CN, 5¢: 3,200 minted, 10¢, 25¢, 50¢, $1: 1,100 minted, and T$1: 1,541 minted. All coins are CAC Approved except the Morgan Dollar and the 50¢. A spectacular Proof set. A total of 8 coins.
U.S. Proof coins were prized by the earliest American collectors and interest in them was high throughout the 19th century, particularly in the latter half. The purchasing power of money was higher than at the present and incomes lower on a relative basis. After Proofs were offered to the general public in 1858, well-to-do collectors sought Proofs of the silver coins, and a few collectors of outstanding wealth such as the Garretts of Baltimore sought Proof gold.
From the mid-1860s onward, the Philadelphia Mint offered collectors both full gold or silver sets or, for those on a limited budget, Proof sets of the minor coins only, such as the Small Cent, 2 Cents, Nickel 3 Cents and 5 Cents. These sets were popular among the few hundred collectors then active, but well-preserved compete sets in Proofs are every bit as scarce as top-condition specimens of the individual silver and gold pieces, and with them form an important part of the American numismatic heritage.
Estimated Value $27,000 - 30,000.
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| Realized $31,725 |
