BG- 302, 1853 California Gold Rush Circulating Fractional Gold 50C, Liberty Octagonal, "Peacock" Reverse NGC MS64 R4-

It is with great pleasure that we at AUCM present the popular 1853 Fractional Gold 50c, BG-302, Liberty Octagon, "Peacock" reverse, graded NGC MS64. Minted by Frontier, Deviercy & Co. of San Francisco. Fred Holabird, an expert in gold and mining, writes of the wreckage of the SS Winfield Scott in 1853. He tells us that in 1969, "it was reported that divers found and recorded...California Fractional pieces....Eventually, many U.S. gold coins, private or territorial California gold coins, and fractional gold pieces were found..." That provides strong evidence that California Fractional Gold circulated along with other private and territorial issues. Such a golden relic of the California Gold Rush would be perfect for the Fractional Gold enthusiast.

It is a misnomer to call this issue's reverse image a "peacock." It was originally given that moniker by numismatist and auctioneer Art Kagin--and it stuck. This motif could be a creative derivative of the 1853 "Eagle with Rays" reverse of the quarter and half dollar. However, the bird on the coin has a crest, which American eagles do not have. Therefore it could be a crested caracara, which was probably a common sight in 1850s San Francisco. The caracara's body is similar to the one found on the coin. The mythological phoenix metaphor is of course a possibility, since San Francisco was destroyed by fire seven times between 1849-1851, but the bird on the coin more closely resembles an eagle or caracara. However, the die sinker may indeed have been striving to create a phoenix--employing an eagle or caracara as a metaphorical phoenix. The San Francisco government adopted the phoenix as its city seal, but that was not officially until after the 1906 earthquake.