An 1834 Capped Bust, Crosslet 4 gold $5 half eagle led bidding at Legend Rare Coin Auctions Regency 49 sale held Dec. 16 in Las Vegas, realizing $205,625.

It was graded Mint State 63+ by Professional Coin Grading Service and had a green Certified Acceptance Corp. sticker acknowledging quality within the grade, enjoying an illustrious provenance including time in the Louis E. Eliasberg Jr. Collection and more recently the D. Brent Pogue Collection.

At the Stack’s Bowers Galleries and Sotheby’s May 24, 2016, Part IV Pogue auction it realized $129,250. Those catalogers wrote, “This famous half eagle shows highly attractive orange and coppery highlights around its bright yellow gold surfaces.”

The 2016 auction noted that Walter Breen — who was prone to optimistic attributions — considered this a Proof striking. Stack’s Bowers noted that “the design elements on obverse and reverse are particularly well realized, with just a hint of rounding on the curl by Liberty’s ear.”

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