1860-S $20.00 PCGS MS62

As with nearly all of the San Francisco double eagle of the Type One design (except for the dates that have had their populations swelled by Treasure coins), the 1860-S is a date that becomes progressively rarer as you climb the grading ladder. It is only moderately scarce in the lower to medium grades but it is a hard coin to find in properly graded AU58. Uncirculated coins are extremely scarce and almost all of the known pieces are MS60 to MS61 with deep, detracting abrasions. The present example is the single finest 1860-S that I have owned and it is quite possibly the finest that is currently available to collectors. The frosty surfaces are nearly free of marks and were it not for a few light lines in the left obverse field, I could see this coin grading a point higher. The reverse is amazing and grades MS63 to MS64 on its own. The combined PCGS/NGC population for this date in MS62 is just a dozen with a scant two coins higher. An MS63 would cost upwards of $50,000 if it became available. The last PCGS MS62 to sell was Bowers and Merena 11/09: 3856 which brought a reasonable $14,375 and only four PCGS MS62's have sold at auction since the beginning of the 1990's. A major opportunity for the serious Type One collector.