"This is the finest collection of Flowing Hair and Bust dollars graded by PCGS using Bolender and Bowers-Borckardt numbers," said BJ Searls, Manager of the PCGS Set RegistrySM.
"The total number of possible varieties in the registry is 117. This exhibit will showcase 106 of them, many among the finest known examples."
Highlights of the exhibit of early U.S. silver dollars include:
1798 B-32, BB-91, 5 lines, MS-61 (finest known)
"The variety series for early U.S. dollars is difficult to obtain in grades of Extremely Fine or higher. The Hesselgesser Collection has 75 in About Uncirculated grade, and 66 qualify as condition census according to the Bowers-Borckardt silver dollar book," said Ron Guth, PCGS President.
Dr. Robert D. Hesselgesser, a California radiologist, began collecting coins at the age of ten. He started collecting early U.S. silver dollars by Bowers-Borckardt variety six years ago, and now has one of the finest and most complete sets ever assembled. It is ranked as the top set by variety in the PCGS Set RegistrySM.
PCGS attributes early United States silver dollars, 1794 to 1804, by both Bolender (B) and Bowers-Borckardt (BB) numbers. The 117 coins in the PCGS Set RegistrySM each have their own B/BB and PCGS numbers. The registry for Bust dollars does not include 1804-dated dollars or proofs. Varieties with silver plugs may be used to fill appropriate slots based on their B/BB numbers, and are given bonus points.
In 1950 Milford H. Bolender published The United States Silver Dollars from 1794 to 1803, a reference book based on his own specialized collection of Bust dollars. He described and illustrated each variety known to him at the time and assigned (B) numbers to each coin. The book was extensively revised by noted collector, Jules Reiver, in 1988.
A second reference book, Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States: A Complete Encyclopedia, Vol. One, authored in 1993 by Q. David Bowers and Mark Borckardt corrected and updated the Bolender book. Each known variety was assigned a (BB) number. PCGS includes both B and BB numbers in its encapsulation inserts to identify and attribute varieties of early U.S. silver dollars.
PCGS now offers a variety attribution service on all United States coins from 1793 to 1836. For additional information about the attribution services, go to the PCGS web site, www.PCGS.com, or call PCGS Customer Service toll-free at (800) 447-8848.
PCGS is a division of Collectors Universe, Inc., (NASDAQ: CLCT).
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To introduce its expanded variety attribution services, Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) will display the Hesselgesser Bust Dollar Collection at the Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo, February 15 - 17, 2007.