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10 Dollars, United States, 1838

National Museum of American History

Object Details

mint
U.S. Mint, Philadelphia
designer
Gobrecht, Christian
Description (Brief)
One (1) 10 dollar coin
United States, 1838
Obverse Image: Left facing Liberty with hair tied in a bun and wearing a coronet. 13 stars around.
Obverse Text: LIBERTY / 1838
Reverse Image: Eagle with wings outstretched clutching arrows and branch in talons, shield over chest.
Reverse Text: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / TEN D.
Description
The gold British sovereigns that James Smithson bequeathed to the United States were melted down and re-struck as American coins. Some of the gold went into the reissue of the ten-dollar piece, or eagle. There were other factors at work, of course, including two Acts of Congress that reduced the weight and fineness of all United States gold coins, in an effort to keep them in circulation.
The resumption of eagle coinage was ordered in July 1838, and between seven and eight thousand of the coins, the first eagles struck since 1804, were minted at the beginning of December. Smithson's legacy played a role: the knowledge that a massive amount of bullion was on its way across the Atlantic fostered the decision to resume the eagle, the largest existing American denomination.
Christian Gobrecht was responsible for the designs on the resumed eagle coinage. His left-facing Liberty sported a coronet (there is a copper cent, also by Gobrecht, with a nearly identical arrangement), while the rounded tip of the truncation points to the "1" in the date.
A simple eagle with shield appears on the reverse. The obverse design was modified slightly in 1839, the truncation now being centered above the date. A handful of proofs, specimen coins of record or for VIPs, was also struck. Three have been reliably reported, and a fourth is rumored.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Mint
1838
ID Number
1985.0441.0292
catalog number
1985.0441.0292
accession number
1985.0441
Object Name
coin
Physical Description
gold (overall metal)
0 (overall die axis)
0 (overall die axis measurement)
struck (overall production method)
Measurements
overall: 2 mm x 27 mm; 3/32 in x 1 1/16 in
place made
United States
United States: Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
Related Publication
Zoomable Image and Details
Feingold, Ellen R.. Value of Money, The
Glossary of Coins and Currency Terms
Related Web Publication
http://americanhistory.si.edu/coins/glossary.cfm
See more items in
Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection
Coins
Numismatics
Coins, Currency and Medals
Legendary Coins
National Museum of American History
Record ID
nmah_1077657
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ab-2121-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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