1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle : History & Value

By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
 

Liberty Head Quarter Eagles were struck at the four mints in 1852. The Philadelphia Mint, awash in California gold struck over one million pieces for the second consecutive year, while the New Orleans branch, with 148,000 coins struck, was the only mint-marked issue with a mintage over 10,000.

Gold coin expert Doug Winter enumerates two varieties of the 1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle in the Third Edition of Gold Coins of the New Orleans Mint, 1839-1909 (2018). Dealers and auction houses may not care to distinguish these two varieties, but specialists may wish to take note.

These varieties are easily distinguished. Variety 1 has a thin “O” mintmark that is positioned leftward with the arrow fletching visible at the top and left of the inner loop. Variety 2, the more common of the pair, has a thick bulbous “O” mintmark centered over the “1” and the fraction bar. The border of the fletching is barely visible on the right side of the inner loop.

What Is the 1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle Worth?

The Philadelphia Mint’s output of 1852 Liberty Head Quarter Eagles is nearly 10 times higher than that of New Orleans. Yet the number of extant Mint State survivors makes the 1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle 17.5 times scarcer. In his reference, Doug Winter ascribes some population bloat to the NGC MS61 grade, which we did not investigate for our analysis. If true, that would further skew the ratio. We note a small number of resubmissions and crossovers in our “Noteworthy Specimens” section below.

The 1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle has shed between 38% and 50% of its value in condition-census grades since 2000. These declines are less likely to be caused by the small increases in the certified population and more attributable to an overall softness in demand for New Orleans Mint gold. If nothing else, the 1852-O is more affordable now than it has been at any point over the last 30 years.

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Market Data and Noteworthy Specimens

Top Population: PCGS MS63 (1, 10/2024), NGC MS63 (4, 10/2024), and CAC MS63 (1:0 stickered:graded, 8/2024).

• NGC MS63 #642662-004: “The Buxton Collection,” Heritage Auctions, January 14, 2022, Lot 3909 – $10,200. Variety 1. Tick at the center of the neck. Die rust present on the neck. Long hairline scratch between stars 1 and 2. Tick below star 8. Deep hit between stars 11 and 12. Eagle’s right leg weak.
• PCGS MS63 #5649318: Heritage Auctions, September 25, 1998, Lot 7031 – $12,650; Bowers and Merena, July 2003, Lot 2517 – $10,637.50; “The Charleston Collection,” American Numismatic Rarities, September 18, 2005, Lot 1120 – $10,465; Heritage Auctions, May 10, 2007, Lot 2232 – $11,500; Heritage Auctions, May 1, 2009, Lot 3628 – $8,625; Unknown intermediaries; Del Loy Hansen. Variety 2. Vertical scratch to the right of nose. Diagonal hit on jaw. Hit in the left obverse field between stars 2 and 3. Scratch in the field to right of star 4. Diagonal scratches above star 12, extending into the field. On the reverse, gouge and hit above arrows. Series of scratches above eagle’s head and neck.
• NGC MS63 #1293444-026: As NGC MS63. Heritage Auctions, January 1998, Lot 7563 – $9,545; “The Ronald W. Brown Acadiana Collection,” Heritage Auctions, August 13, 1999, Lot 7860 – $9,660. As NGC MS63 #1293444-026. Heritage Auctions, January 2001, Lot 6867 – $7,762.50; “Ashland City,” Heritage Auctions, January 11, 2003, Lot 4698 – $9,487.50. Variety 2. ASHLAND CITY on insert. Parallel diagonal scrapes below Liberty’s chin. Scattered ticks in the upper left obverse field between stars 4 and 5. 
• PCGS MS62 #3462973: “The Carolina Classics Collection,” Heritage Auctions, August 16, 2024, Lot 5521 – $5,160. Variety 2. Clashed dies. Planchet void between stars 4 and 5. Stacked diagonal marks to the right of star 5. Sideways “L-shaped” scrape to the left of 1. Planchet void on neck. Shallow hit on the coronet to R. Reflective surface disturbance above eagle’s head.
• PCGS MS62 #84283735: As NGC MS62 #3124209-002. Heritage Auctions, September 19, 2008, Lot 3294 – $6,325; Heritage Auctions, September 7, 2012, Lot 4787 – $6,462.50. As PCGS MS62 #84283735. Stack’s Bowers, November 13, 2020, Lot 8232 – $5,040. Variety 2. Carbon spot touching the hair at Liberty’s forehead. Diagonal scratch to the right of star 1. On the reverse, planchet void below first S of STATES.
• NGC MS62 #5743744-007: As NGC MS62 #4877849-005. Heritage Auctions, March 15, 2019, Lot 4153 – $3,600; Heritage Auctions, August 16, 2019, Lot 4564 – $5,760. As NGC MS62 #5743744-007. Heritage Auctions, May 13, 2020, Lot 23452 – $5,499.60. Variety 2.
• NGC MS62 #4628792-008: Heritage Auctions, June 14, 2018, Lot 4102 – $3,600.
• PCGS MS62 #82249050: Stack’s Bowers, February 16, 2017, Lot 3922 – $6,462.50. Variety 2. Clashed dies. Small tick between stars 6 and 7. cluster of small ticks at the back of Liberty’s jaw. Scattered frost in the protected areas of the obverse and reverse.
• PCGS MS62 #87047501: As PCGS MS62 #2753997.”The Twelve Oaks Collection,” Heritage Auctions, September 9, 2016, Lot 13964 – $7,637.50. Since this sale, the coin has been regraded and is imaged at PCGS CoinFacts, however the certification lookup returns a 1921 Chinese Dollar with the same cert. number! Variety 2. Streak of copper toning across Liberty’s cheek. Toning spot in the left obverse field between stars 3 and 4. Notch at the left tip of Liberty’s bust truncation.
• NGC MS62 #3575211-005: Heritage Auctions, August 9, 2013, Lot 4981 – $6,168.75. Variety 1. Small tick to the left of the ear. Small spot to the left of the lips. Die rust present on the neck. Tick to the right of the neck. Small tear-shaped planchet gouge between stars 11 and 12. On the reverse, diagonal hairline from the base of U of UNITED to the 2.
• NGC MS62 #3005760-001: Heritage Auctions, May 30, 2008, Lot 3009 – $6,900. Variety 1. Planchet gouge to the left of Liberty’s nose. Die rust on neck.
• NGC MS62 #557744-001: Heritage Auctions, May 2, 2003, Lot 7199 – $6,325. Variety 2.

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1852-O Liberty Head Quarter Eagle Coin Specifications

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