Carson City bullion balance in Holabird November sale
- Published: Oct 29, 2024, 5 PM
The original bullion balance used at the Carson City Mint in Nevada from 1870 to 1893 to weigh precious metals for eventual conversion into planchets for the production of circulating U.S. coins is back in the public eye after more than a decade in storage.
The 1869 balance scale and an 18-karat gold rooster were last on display in 2013, at the Nugget Casino in Sparks, Nevada, when the gaming establishment was owned by John Ascuaga.
The balance is offered in a public auction set for Nov. 21 to 24 in Reno by Holabird Western Americana and has a pre-sale estimate of $25,000 to $50,000.
According to numismatist, geologist and mining expert Fred Holabird, the Carson City Mint bullion balance as well as those for other Mint production facilities were manufactured under a contract between the nation’s coin producer and the scale manufacturer Henry Troemner in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
According to Holabird’s research, Troemner secured a contract with the U.S. Mint circa 1856 to provide balances and scales for all of the U.S. Mint production facilities and assay offices.
“... there is an important distinction between scales and balances. Scales measure the weight of an item where the weight is measured on the balance bar, adjusted by weights on the bar,” Holabird says.
“A balance uses a neutral bar with pans hanging at either side, where weights are placed in a pan on one side, and the items to be weighed in the other side, thus a ‘balance,’ ” he explains.
“The Carson City Mint, and all the other bullion weighing devices at the Mints are technically ‘balances.’ Troemner called them ‘Troemner Special Bullion Balance.’ ”
Troemner’s manufacturing identification plate appears on a brass plaque at the top of the balance stand. The same plate appears on all of the older Troemner scales and is also evident in images illustrating John Shannon’s 1999 book The Assay Balance.
Scandal over the theft of gold and silver bullion forced the Carson City Mint’s closure as a Mint production facility and the removal of much of its equipment. The facility was reopened by the Treasury Department in 1900 strictly as an assay office. As of 1934, much of the usable equipment had been relocated to other Mint facilities and furnishings were sold off or junked.
The Carson City Mint structure was secured from the federal government in 1939 to be commissioned as a state museum.
In 1957, three years after successful gaming operator Dick Graves opened his Nugget Casino in Carson City, he commissioned a local jeweler to fabricate a 225-ounce 18-karat gold rooster as a promotional piece for his restaurant in the Nugget Casino in Sparks.
Along the way, according to Holabird, Graves also acquired the Carson City Mint bullion balance, which he put on display at the Sparks gaming house.
Graves eventually dissolved his gaming interests in Nevada beginning in 1959, selling the casino in Sparks to Ascuaga. By January 1970, Graves was done with Nevada gaming. Holabird said he first saw the Troemner Special Bullion Balance and the gold rooster in the casino at Sparks in 1971.
The Sparks Nugget, according to Holabird, was sold by the Ascuaga family in 2013 after 63 years of their oversight, and not long after that the Mint balance and the gold rooster were removed from public view.
Whereabouts of the Carson City Mint device were unknown until recently, when Holabird was contacted by the Ascuaga family, who had kept it for safekeeping and wanted to see about putting them up for public auction.
Specifications
According to Holabird, “The balance [from the Carson City Mint] was built into a waist-high table for ease in use at the mint. It measures 3 [feet]’ x 7 [feet]’ x 31[inches]” high.
“The metal base of the balance is flush with the table top allowing ease of product in and out of the pans.
“The balance height above the table top/balance base is 58 [inches]. The support of the pans at its widest point is 18 [inches].” The height to the arm is 11 5/8 [inches]”.
“The arm length is 46½ [inches]”, with an overall height to the top of the cased arm of 56 [inches].” The arm is fully cased in wood and glass, all original, for protection from dust.
“The balance arm and attendant crank are in full working order. There are two set screws on one side for stabilization, currently set high so that the pointer at the center of the beam is not resting on the center support, a sensitive part of the instrument,” Holabird observed.
The table shows wear at both ends from moving heavy loads, a small indented line, possibly from the edge of a dropped gold ingot, and a few circular water stains suspected to be from casino customers using it to rest their drink glass.
“The top case was removed for the [auction cataloging] photograph session and the arm cleaned of dust. It appears in perfect, or near-perfect condition,” Holabird said.
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Carson City bullion balance in Holabird November sale
- Published: Oct 29, 2024, 5 PM
The original bullion balance used at the Carson City Mint in Nevada from 1870 to 1893 to weigh precious metals for eventual conversion into planchets for the production of circulating U.S. coins is back in the public eye after more than a decade in storage.
The 1869 balance scale and an 18-karat gold rooster were last on display in 2013, at the Nugget Casino in Sparks, Nevada, when the gaming establishment was owned by John Ascuaga.
The balance is offered in a public auction set for Nov. 21 to 24 in Reno by Holabird Western Americana and has a pre-sale estimate of $25,000 to $50,000.
According to numismatist, geologist and mining expert Fred Holabird, the Carson City Mint bullion balance as well as those for other Mint production facilities were manufactured under a contract between the nation’s coin producer and the scale manufacturer Henry Troemner in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
According to Holabird’s research, Troemner secured a contract with the U.S. Mint circa 1856 to provide balances and scales for all of the U.S. Mint production facilities and assay offices.
“... there is an important distinction between scales and balances. Scales measure the weight of an item where the weight is measured on the balance bar, adjusted by weights on the bar,” Holabird says.
“A balance uses a neutral bar with pans hanging at either side, where weights are placed in a pan on one side, and the items to be weighed in the other side, thus a ‘balance,’ ” he explains.
“The Carson City Mint, and all the other bullion weighing devices at the Mints are technically ‘balances.’ Troemner called them ‘Troemner Special Bullion Balance.’ ”
Troemner’s manufacturing identification plate appears on a brass plaque at the top of the balance stand. The same plate appears on all of the older Troemner scales and is also evident in images illustrating John Shannon’s 1999 book The Assay Balance.
Scandal over the theft of gold and silver bullion forced the Carson City Mint’s closure as a Mint production facility and the removal of much of its equipment. The facility was reopened by the Treasury Department in 1900 strictly as an assay office. As of 1934, much of the usable equipment had been relocated to other Mint facilities and furnishings were sold off or junked.
The Carson City Mint structure was secured from the federal government in 1939 to be commissioned as a state museum.
In 1957, three years after successful gaming operator Dick Graves opened his Nugget Casino in Carson City, he commissioned a local jeweler to fabricate a 225-ounce 18-karat gold rooster as a promotional piece for his restaurant in the Nugget Casino in Sparks.
Along the way, according to Holabird, Graves also acquired the Carson City Mint bullion balance, which he put on display at the Sparks gaming house.
Graves eventually dissolved his gaming interests in Nevada beginning in 1959, selling the casino in Sparks to Ascuaga. By January 1970, Graves was done with Nevada gaming. Holabird said he first saw the Troemner Special Bullion Balance and the gold rooster in the casino at Sparks in 1971.
The Sparks Nugget, according to Holabird, was sold by the Ascuaga family in 2013 after 63 years of their oversight, and not long after that the Mint balance and the gold rooster were removed from public view.
Whereabouts of the Carson City Mint device were unknown until recently, when Holabird was contacted by the Ascuaga family, who had kept it for safekeeping and wanted to see about putting them up for public auction.
Specifications
According to Holabird, “The balance [from the Carson City Mint] was built into a waist-high table for ease in use at the mint. It measures 3 [feet]’ x 7 [feet]’ x 31[inches]” high.
“The metal base of the balance is flush with the table top allowing ease of product in and out of the pans.
“The balance height above the table top/balance base is 58 [inches]. The support of the pans at its widest point is 18 [inches].” The height to the arm is 11 5/8 [inches]”.
“The arm length is 46½ [inches]”, with an overall height to the top of the cased arm of 56 [inches].” The arm is fully cased in wood and glass, all original, for protection from dust.
“The balance arm and attendant crank are in full working order. There are two set screws on one side for stabilization, currently set high so that the pointer at the center of the beam is not resting on the center support, a sensitive part of the instrument,” Holabird observed.
The table shows wear at both ends from moving heavy loads, a small indented line, possibly from the edge of a dropped gold ingot, and a few circular water stains suspected to be from casino customers using it to rest their drink glass.
“The top case was removed for the [auction cataloging] photograph session and the arm cleaned of dust. It appears in perfect, or near-perfect condition,” Holabird said.
Connect with Coin World:
Sign up for our free eNewsletter
Access our Dealer Directory
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on X (Twitter)
Whether you’re a current subscriber or new, you can take advantage of the best offers on magazine subscriptions available in digital, print or both! Whether you want your issue every week or every month, there’s a subscription to meet your needs.