1873-CC No Arrows

The 1873-CC No Arrows dime is the apex rarity of the entire Seated Liberty Dime series, and one of the small handful of unique American silver coins recognized in modern numismatics. Carson City delivery records reported 12,400 pieces struck in the early weeks of 1873 before the Coinage Act of February 12, 1873 raised the dime weight from 2.49 to 2.50 grams and required the addition of Arrows at the date. Following the Act, nearly the entire pre-Act Carson City output was returned to the melting pot rather than released into commerce or restruck on the new standard. The result is that only a single specimen of the 1873-CC No Arrows is known to exist today, the Louis Eliasberg coin, which traces an unbroken provenance chain through the Pittman and Garrett cabinets back into the nineteenth century. Weight is 2.49 grams on the pre-Act Coinage Act of February 21, 1853 standard.

Authentication on any claimed 1873-CC No Arrows essentially reduces to provenance verification, since the certified universe consists of one coin. The Eliasberg example has been encapsulated and the documented chain of ownership through the major American collectors of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries is the central authentication anchor. A second purported survivor would need to clear extraordinary scrutiny from PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC, the Numismatic Guaranty Company, with die markers matching known reference photographs of the Eliasberg coin, the proper 2.49-gram pre-Act weight on a 90 percent silver planchet, the 17.9-millimeter reeded edge, and a Carson City mintmark seated above the wreath bow knot. The Newman Numismatic Portal and the Eliasberg catalog of 1996-1997 provide the published reference imagery that any candidate would need to match. The standard expectation is that no additional pieces survive.

The 1873-CC No Arrows operates outside the normal collecting market for the series, with the single known example commanding seven-figure auction realizations on the rare occasions it changes hands. The Key Date classification reflects the issue's listed status in the standard reference catalogs, though "unique" is the more precise description of survival. For working collectors, the takeaway is that the Eliasberg coin defines the issue completely and there is no realistic acquisition path. For the broader story of Gobrecht's design, the 1873 Coinage Act, and the Carson City Mint, see the Seated Liberty Dime series history.