Atlanta, June 5, 1997 - Rare coin investment firm, Hancock and Harwell, announced the acquisition and sale of a rare $5 gold coin minted in Dahlonega, Georgia, dating from the Civil War. Surfacing after a fifty year absence, the 1861-D Half Eagle will now become a part of an impressive private collection known as the Duke’s Creek Collection. The transaction amounts to more than $160,000; the highest price ever paid for a Dahlonega coin. The Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS), an independent professional association that serves the coin-buying public, graded the coin "Mint State 63." "This coin is the finest known specimen of this date and the first I’ve seen where the image or devices are fully struck," says Jack Hancock, partner of Hancock and Harwell.
Although Dahlonega is widely known as an area where gold was panned and mined over a hundred and sixty years ago, few people are aware that the U.S. government operated a branch mint there beginning in 1838. In 1861, during the Civil War, the Confederacy seized the mint and turned a portion of the uncoined gold into gold dollars and half eagles dated 1861-D. Although the mint has long since burned down, the few surviving, very valuable, coins serve as a reminder of the early days of American coinage.
Hancock and Harwell’s website played a key role in this transaction. It served as an introduction to the private collector who eventually bought the coin. "In the past," says partner Bob Harwell, "collectors depended upon numismatic publications to learn about the availability of certain coins. Today, the internet creates instant access to a world of coins and has measurably enhanced interest in coin collecting as a hobby and an investment."
Not only has the internet played a key role in encouraging coin collecting, it also serves as an on-line museum once the purchase has been made. "Many of our customers like to access our website to view their purchases," says Bob Harwell, "this is because rare coins are usually locked away in a safety deposit box or vault."Hancock and Harwell are long time purveyors of rare coinage from Georgia.
With a twenty-five year history of coin investment and brokerage services, the company’s clients includes sophisticated and novice collectors, as well as museums. Other notable collections the firm has built and sold include the Arthur L. Montgomery Collection of Dahlonega Gold in 1984 and the more recent North Georgia Collection that sold for over $1.25 million in 1995. The latter collection is the finest complete set of Dahlonega specimens known and can be viewed at www.dahlonegagold.com.
A fascinating history of this Georgia coinage is found in a recently released book entitled, "Gold Coins of the Dahlonega Mint 1838-1861" by Doug Winter. Several of Hancock and Harwell’s coin collections are mentioned in the book. Copies of the book can be obtained through the firm.
