1834 CAPPED BUST $5, CAPPED-PLAIN 4 MS61

CAPPED BUST. PLAIN 4. BRIGHT LUSTROUS SURFACES. LESS THAN 41 BELIEVED TO EXITS IN ALL GRADES. VERY SCARCE "FAT HEAD $5" Official records give a delivery of 74,709 pieces for the 1834 Capped Head Left Half Eagle, a total that includes both Plain 4 and Crosslet 4 pieces. This mintage was completed by May 30. Only 50,141 of these coins actually left the Mint. The remaining 24,568 pieces were retained once Mint officials became confident that a new bill reducing the weight of the Half Eagle would become law. It eventually did, becoming the Mint Act of June 28, 1834. Beginning August 1, the undistributed 1834 Capped Head Left Fives joined scores of additional old tenor gold coins on their way to the melting pot for recoinage into Classic Half Eagles. The attrition rate among those coins that were distributed was also severe, as most were either returned to the Mint for recoinage or shipped overseas and destroyed. The Plain 4 is rarer than the Crosslet 4, and we believe that only 35-45 examples of the former variety are extant.