CONDITIONALLY RARE 1893-CC DOUBLE EAGLE GRADED MS63 BY PCGS

The PCGS Coinfacts main plate coin.

The Carson City mint closed down in 1893, making this sue the last of the 19 double eagles made at this facility. Unlike the Type Two issues from Carson City, the 1893-CC was an issue which mainly went from bank to bank and a result it is easier to locate an AU58 to MS62 than it is a well-circulated example. There are not more than two dozen or so that grade MS63, and many of these have noticeable toning or mint-made copper spotting which is off-putting to many serious CC $20 collectors.

The obverse is as nice as any Carson City double eagle that I can recall seeing—regardless of date. It is miraculously clean and it more closely resembles an 1893-P $20 than it does an 1893-CC. The reverse, oddly, is less choice with some scattered small abrasions. This coin was returned to me by CAC with the dreaded Red Sticker of Death on it, which was scribbled the comment “rev mark.” I have spent close to 15 minutes examining this coin with a 5x glass and I can see the mark that JA is talking about, but I don’t think that anything has been done to efface it. If you wish to stare at the coin yourself, I’ll be happy to ship it to you via Express Mail and you can make your own decision.

Just two PCGS MS63 1893-CC double eagles have sold at auction since 2013. Stack’s Bowers 2024 ANA: 3480 brought $49,200, while in their 2023 ANA sale, Heritage set a price record for the issue when they sold one of just three CAC approved examples of this date at a very strong $96,000.

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