1872-CC 10C (Regular Strike)
Series: Liberty Seated Dimes 1837-1891
PCGS MS63
PCGS AU58
PCGS AU53
- PCGS #:
- 4657
- Designer:
- James Barton Longacre
- Edge:
- Reeded
- Diameter:
- 17.90 millimeters
- Weight:
- 2.48 grams
- Mintage:
- 35,480
- Mint:
- Carson City
- Metal:
- 90% Silver, 10% Copper
- Auction Record:
- $480,000 • MS63 • 08-28-2022 • Heritage Auctions
Major Varieties
- 1872-CC 10C
Rarity and Survival Estimates Learn More
| Survival Estimate | |
|---|---|
| All Grades | 200 |
| 60 or Better | 3 |
| 65 or Better | |
| Numismatic Rarity | |
|---|---|
| All Grades | R-7.0 |
| 60 or Better | R-9.8 |
| 65 or Better | R-10.1 |
| Relative Rarity By Type All Specs in this Type | |
|---|---|
| All Grades | 3 / 67 |
| 60 or Better | 2 / 67 TIE |
| 65 or Better | 1 / 67 |
| Relative Rarity By Series All Specs in this Series | |
|---|---|
| All Grades | 5 / 122 TIE |
| 60 or Better | 3 / 122 TIE |
| 65 or Better | 1 / 122 |
Condition Census What Is This?
|
#1 PCGS MS63
"Colonel" E.H.R. Green; Green estate; consigned to B.G. Johnson; offered to Jim Kelly, invoice dated December 5, 1941, returned; offered through Stack’s, invoice dated July 23, 1943); James A. Stack, Sr.; “The James A Stack, Sr. Collection,” Stack’s, January 1990, Lot 149; Waldo E. "Pat" Bolen, Jr.. "Numisma '95," David W. Akers, November 30, 1995, Lot 2137 - $29,700. As PCGS MS61. “The Kennywood Collection,” American Numismatic Rarities, January 10, 2005, lot 375 – $71,300; Rusty Goe; As PCGS MS63 #24097350. “The Battle Born Collection,” Stack’s Bowers, August 7, 2012, Lot 11103 – $188,000; “The Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part III,” Heritage Auctions, May 12, 2015, Lot 98245 – $182,125. Heritage Auctions, August 24, 2022, Lot 3541 – $480,000; Dell Loy Hansen. Bolen also owned the finest-known 1873-CC Liberty Seated Dime. |
|
#2 PCGS AU58
|
#3 PCGS AU53
As "About Uncirculated." "The Lemus Collection," Stack's, October 18, 2005, Lot 657 - $40,250. As PCGS AU53 #81958140. Legend Rare Coin Auctions, November-December 2016, Lot 175 – Passed. As PCGS AU53 #83778276. Dell Loy Hansen. |
|
#3 PCGS AU53
|
|
#3 Est. AU53
Heritage Auctions, July 31, 2008, Lot 1610 – $37,375; “The Belle Collection of Carson City Coinage,” Heritage Auctions, March 28, 2009, Lot 833 – $20,700. |
| #6 PCGS AU50 |
The 1872-CC Liberty Seated Dime
The Carson City Mint began operation in 1870 but did not strike dimes until the following year, ultimately coining them in only eight of its 19 active years (1871–1878). Output during the facility’s first six years was extremely meager. Although the 1872-CC Liberty Seated Dime (#4657) boasted the largest mintage of this early period at 35,480 coins, that figure is dwarfed by the massive output of over 4.6 million dimes struck just three years later in 1875. Furthermore, because of the vast distance separating Nevada from collectors back East, almost no 1872-CC dimes were saved at the time of issue.
A single die marriage produced the entire 1872-CC run, utilizing a reverse die shared across all CC dimes from 1871 to 1874. From this modest output, only one Mint State example survives today. While every other CC dime date is known by at least two uncirculated specimens, the 1872-CC stands alone—a level of condition rarity matched only by the legendary, unique 1873-CC No Arrows dime. The drop-off in preservation is so severe that after this single MS example, only a handful of examples are known in the About Uncirculated grade range.
Traced back to the early 1940s, the unique Mint State coin was acquired by Rusty Goe for the Battle Born Collection when it was graded PCGS MS61, but the coin has since been reassessed and upgraded to PCGS MS63. Later featured in the prestigious Eugene Gardner Collection, this historic piece last sold at auction for nearly half a million dollars. It now resides in the Dell Loy Hansen Collection.
The remaining handful of About Uncirculated pieces exhibit the subdued luster and natural surface tarnish typical of lightly circulated vintage silver. While the toned coin from the Bender Collection displays attractive patches of color, it lacks the visual presence of the Battle Born specimen. Still, it remains the consensus choice for second-finest known.
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