The U.S. Mint’s recent survey on 21 coin designs it may revisit in 2026 brought some welcome attention to Gobrecht dollars, a highly-researched and specialized area within U.S. coins where the die alignment — the relation of the obverse and reverse dies to one another — can be important.

Stack’s Bowers offered an 1839 Gobrecht dollar lacking the designer’s name under Liberty, listed as Judd 104 Restrike in the pattern reference, with a reeded edge and identified as Die Alignment III.

Graded Proof 65 by Professional Coin Grading Service, it sold for $87,000 on Nov. 14.

The early restrike was produced around 1862 to 1864 to meet collector demand and carries the “starless” reverse. Perhaps 75 to 100 are known of the Judd 104 today, with around a dozen Die Alignment III restrikes known, and additional restrikes featuring Die Alignment IV.

The strong mirrors in the fields along with granularity within the eagle’s beak help identify it as a restrike, as do granular letters that are sometimes described as rusty.

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