New 1854 Period 1 California Fractional Gold Dollar Variety Discovered

A new die variety of California Fractional Gold Dollar has been discovered by Ken Glickman,an avid collector and researcher of California Fractional Gold for more than two decades. The new variety has beenconfirmed by California Fractional Gold specialists Ronald J. Gillio, Robert D. Leonard, Jr. and John Pack. The newvariety designation for this unique specimen will be listed as BG-526a, as that comes between BG-526 (1853) andBG-527 (1854) in the BG reference book.

The new specimen's obverse is the same as that of BG-526, and is easy to match, as follows: There are threeprominent die cracks (one above the portrait, connecting the head to the rim, and two near 3 o'clock, connecting theupper and lower portions of the hair bun to the rim). The bold nature of these breaks makes them easy to identify.Since they are heavier in this pairing than seen in the BG-526 usage, they must always be present in this marriage.

The reverse die differs from that used for BG-526, however, and has been determined to match the die used to strikethe unique BG-529, but in an earlier state.

Hence, a new die pairing is discovered!

Interestingly, this muling of the BG-526 obverse and BG-529 reverse combines an obverse used in an 1853-datedpairing and a reverse used in an 1854-dated pairing. It also sheds light on the striking sequence of these varieties byway of comparison of the die states.

There is notable difference in the thickness of the three die cracks between BG-526 (minted in 1853) and the newvariety (minted in 1854). BG-526 is reportedly known in two die states, one with faint cracks and one with heavierones. These cracks in the BG-526a usage are further advanced, placing the BG-526a in sequence as the later usage.The dramatic advancement of these breaks, their significant size, and the fact that this variety wasn't discovereduntil well into the 21st century is complementary evidence suggesting that the obverse likely failed completely notlong after this piece was struck. It is the only known specimen thus far, and it could well be unique.

Ken Glickman stated:

Expert Robert D. Leonard, Jr. commented:

Specialist Ron Gillio of Stack's Bowers Galleries added: