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Sale 17
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Lot 2178
$20 St. Gaudens. 1907. Ultra high relief, lettered edge. PCGS graded Proof 68. Widely regarded as the most elegant and stunning coin ever produced at an American mint, the Ultra High Relief is truly a connoisseurs caviar. This issue is truest to Augustus Saint Gaudens original concept, and the few coined were the direct result of President Theodore Roosevelt's considerable attention to the project. The surfaces are nearly perfect, as expected for such a high grade. No signs of toning or the passage of time to be found, and this coin remains as bright and fresh as the day it was struck. We note that PCGS has graded only 7 examples of the Ultra High Relief, 3 as PR-67, and 4 as PR-68. NGC has graded a total of 6 pieces, 2 as PF-67, 3 as PF-68 and one as PF-69. Thus, a maximum of 13 have been graded by the two main grading services. A few others may exist, and a five more are held by institutions (2 in the Smithsonian, 1 at the ANS, another at the Theodore Roosevelt Museum and one in the Harry Bass Foundation). The total mintage was between 13 and 22, with 2 melted by the Mint just after issue.
Extensive research by Walter Breen, David W. Akers and Elvira Clain-Stefanelli produced the summary of what follows, and we thank each of them for their arduous efforts to report the truth on how this magnificent coin came about.
Augustus Saint Gaudens was the premier sculptor in America. His statuary works graced many parks and buildings of note, and his reputation was known the world over. In 1892 Saint Gaudens designed the official medal for the Columbian Exposition of that year. His design depicted Columbus "transfigured as he set foot in the New World" and the reverse bore a "Grecian youth, unashamedly naked, holding a torch and wreaths to crown the victors" (Breen). The design was submitted and quickly approved by the committee. Nevertheless, the medal came within the site of Anthony Comstock, head of his own Society for the Supression of Vice, and a torrent of letters flooded the power brokers of Congress and the Columbian Exposition Committee, denouncing the naked youth as obscene. Rather than stand firm against the storm, the committee asked Charles E. Barber to redesign the reverse of the medal, which was done to Comstock's approval. Saint Gaudens was furious, and swore never to have anything to do with Mint Bureau again.
Years passed, and in 1905 an opportunity arose that Saint Gaudens could not refuse. His old friend Teddy Roosevelt asked the sculptor to design his inaugural medal. Soon Roosevelt convinced Saint Gaudens to start redesigning the eagle and double eagle, and with the President's backing, Saint Gaudens figured he had a better chance at success with his designs at the Mint. With the help of his assistant Henry Hering, and employing the Paris Mint to keep the project away from the ever jealous Charles E. Barber, molds and casts were submitted to President Roosevelt. Roosevelt choose this design for the double eagle, and dies were finally prepared. Due to the depth of the design, these coins were struck up to nine times in order to bring up the design completely, and that using the largest medal press, which could strike with the force of 172 tons per strike. The reverse die cracked after a handful were struck and the project stalled. Meanwhile Saint Gaudens had died in August of 1907, just months after these were coined in February and March of 1907. Hering and Roosevelt refused to the let the project die, and the design was modified to the High Relief coins of November 1907. Mintage figures state 11,250 were struck, despite Mint Director Barber's sabotage and protests. Soon Barber would win out, and the relief was greatly reduced again in late 1907, and that design continued through 1933 when gold production ceased until more recent times.
Given the recent sale of a 1933 double eagle for over $7 million, this coin seems a relative bargain. As a work of numismatic art, none finer are seen, and the ownership of an Ultra High Relief is undoubtedly the pinnacle of any numismatists collection.
Bidding will commence at $1,000,000 (PCGS # 9131) .
Estimated Value $1,000,000-UP.
From our Dr. Richard Ariagno Collection Sale, June 1, 1999, lot 885.
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