Stack’s Bowers Galleries numismatist and cataloger, James McCartney, recently posted on the company’s website about the upcoming auction sale of the famed 1861 Dahlonega Gold Dollar. What makes this coin so interesting is that all 1861-D gold dollars were struck by the Confederacy.
Despite a vacuum of knowledge and skills relevant to the minting process, in May of 1861 the Confederacy used the bullion on hand to strike approximately $3,000 face value worth of gold dollars and half eagles. A small quantity of half eagles had been produced prior to Confederate occupation, but all 1861-D gold dollars were struck by rebel technicians, giving the 1861 gold dollar the distinction of being the only coin to be struck exclusively by the Confederacy.
To read more about this historic, second-rarest gold dollar: “Mint State 1861 Dahlonega Gold Dollar to be featured in Rarities Night of our November 2016 Baltimore Auction.”