I was looking at the Wikipedia page for the gold dollar, when at the "War years" section, I came across this interesting piece of text: "Since dies crack in time, and all the mints were supplied with them from Philadelphia, coining could not last, and in May 1861, coins and supplies remaining at Dahlonega were turned over to the treasury of the Confederate States of America, which Georgia had by then joined. Gold coins with a face value of $6 were put aside for assay. Normally, they would have been sent to Philadelphia to await the following year's meeting of the United States Assay Commission, when they would be available for testing. Instead, these were sent to the initial Confederate capital of Montgomery, Alabama, though what was done with them there, and their ultimate fate, are unknown." So were there actually 6 dollar gold coins issued (either by the United States or the Confederate States) during this time, which happened to be lost? If so, has anyone here ever heard of these 6 dollar coins? Thanks in advance.
Not to spoil everyone's fun, but I think the literal reading is "$6 face value of gold coins". Or, to put it another way, there were a lot more than 6 "dollar gold coins" issued.
Hmm, the article says "Gold coins with a face value of $6", not "$6 face value of gold coins". Which would mean that there were issued coins with a face value of six dollars (like how a dime is a coin with a face value of ten cents, for instance).
And three dimes are coins with a face value of 30 cents. I've heard this phrasing ever since my earliest days in the hobby. Honest!
Not explicitly. Again, the article mentions "Gold coins with a face value of $6", which I assume would refer to the minting of gold coins each with a face value of six dollars (like how Stellas were gold coins each with a face value of four dollars).
Having just read the article... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_dollar#War_years The paragraph in question is about the rarity of the 1861-D (Dahlonega) dollar coin. There were an estimated 1000 1861-D $1 coins minted...of which, only 45-60 are known. The author then states there were a few coins set aside to be assayed in Philadelphia. Since the war had begun, those coins were sent to Mongomery, AL instead. The point of mentioning that (I guess) is because those coins could still exist. The article says coins of "six dollars face value" were set aside for the assayer. Earlier in the paragraph, the author says they made both dollar and half eagle gold coins at Dahlonega in 1861. The "six dollar face value" was likely one (1) dollar coin and one (1) half eagle ($5) coin. Why they just didn't say that, I have no idea.
Ah, so I assume it was a mistake in the article and I got my hopes up a bit. Either way, a six dollar pattern would have been interesting nonetheless.
I would say it was a half eagle and gold dollar, gold coins with a face value of $6. The problem is according to the official records the United States didn't strike any gold dollars in Dahlonega in 1861 before it was taken over by the State of Georgia and then the Confederacy. So where would that gold dollar have come from? Could it have been from the final coinage of 1860 that hadn't been sent to Philadelphia yet for the Trial of the Pyx? Could all of the coins have been 1860 D coins?
The Philadelphia Mint made all of the dies in those days and sent them to the branch mints. At least one 1861 dated gold dollar die was sent to Dahlonega. It was paired with the obverse die that was used to make the 1860-D gold dollars (which was in pretty bad shape) to make the 1861-D coins. I have a vaugue recollection of reading that the Dahlonega Mint superintendent bundled up some coins soon after the war began and sent them Philadelphia for the Assay Commission review, I’d have to run through my books to find that one.
