Branch mint proofs made before the 1950s are exceedingly rare by any measurement. Today I will focus on my favorite New Orleans mint proofs. View attachment 192910 The 1856-O Type 1 PCGS SP-63 double eagle is considered to be the single most important coin ever minted at the New Orleans mint and has exploded in popularity. The price of this coin is reflective of its popularity. When it sold in 2002, it was a bargain at only $310,000 compared to what it realized recently when it sold for $1.4 Million. This price makes it the most valuable proof double eagle and the newest member of the million dollar club. As beautiful and expensive as the double eagle is, it is by far not the most expensive New Orleans proof. The 1844-O NGC PR-65 UCAM Liberty Eagle takes that prize. This piece is perhaps the most beautiful gold proof to come out of the New Orleans mint and its price tag of $2.5 Million reflects that. It first hit the auction block in June 1890 and has a remarkable pedigree. Some of the most prominent names in numismatics have held this unique proof in their collection. Some of the names include former US Treasury Secretary William H. Woodin, Virgil Brand. Abe Kosoff, John J. Ford, John Murrell and Robert Lecce. Today it is in the hands of a private Florida collector. Recently, my friend Paul Hollis arranged to return this coin to the New Orleans mint for the reopening of the mint following Hurricane Katrina. The mint, which is now a museum, displayed it for several months. With a coin like that so close to home, I visited it on more than one occasion. The New Orleans mint also produced silver proofs. Perhaps the most popular of these silver proofs is the 1879-O Class 1 Morgan dollar. This beautiful Morgan dollar is one of only four known to exist of the original mintage of twelve pieces. This coin was produced to mark the reopening of the New Orleans mint following its closing in 1861 because of the onset of the Civil war. Unbelievably, famous Morgan collector Jack Lee, who was a member of our local coin club and a person friend of mine owned two of the four known pieces.