Series: (None)
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#1 Unknown, lightly circulated
B. Max Mehl, 1932 - Wayte Raymond - F.C.C. Boyd - King Farouk - 1956 ANA:1835 - Josiah K. Lilly - National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution |
In late June 1849, the firm of Moffat & Co. began issuing small gold ingots. The value of each ingot depended on the weight of gold contained therein, and varied from $9 to $264 in actual value. The most common of the Moffat ingots are the $16 versions, which appear to have been cast in standard-sized molds, allowing for uniformity in size, shape, and value. Ingots with values other than $16 were cast individually and vary in size and weight, but their shape is such that all known examples bear the same punch used on the $16 ingots (though with different finenesses and values added later. The only Moffat ingots with values other than $16 include a unique $9.45 denomination and this unique $14.25 ingot.
The only example of the $14.25 Moffat Ingot is held in the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institutio. According to Walter Breen, this piece came to the Smithsonian as part of the Josiah K. Lilly bequest, earlier from the F.C.C. Boyd and King Farouk collections (see the full pedigree above).
Sources and/or recommended reading: "Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia Of U.S. And Colonial Coins" by Walter Breen "Private Gold Coins and Patterns of the United States" by Donald H. Kagin, Ph.D.