1856-Da

The 1856-D gold dollar had a mintage of just 1,460 coins, making it one of the rarest regularly issued United States gold coins. Dahlonega was running on borrowed time. Georgia's gold deposits were nearly exhausted, the facility's equipment was aging, and the political tensions between North and South were beginning to affect operations at the small mountain mint. The 1,460-coin output represented a token production run, barely justifying the cost of keeping the presses running.

The 1856-D is the rarest Type 3 gold dollar from Dahlonega and one of the most sought-after coins in the entire gold dollar series. PCGS estimates roughly 30 to 50 survive across all grades, with most in the VG to Fine range. Coins above Extremely Fine are extraordinarily scarce. David Akers, the preeminent authority on U.S. gold coinage, noted that the 1856-D is invariably weakly struck, with rarely any significant detail on Liberty's hair or headdress. Only five to seven examples are estimated to survive in Mint State.

The Dahlonega characteristics are pronounced on the 1856-D: soft strike, olive or greenish gold color from impure local bullion, and slightly granular surfaces. These features are inherent to the mint's production and should be expected on any genuine example. A sharply struck, brilliant gold 1856-D would be cause for suspicion. The "D" mintmark appears below the wreath on the reverse, small and sometimes slightly tilted from the hand-punching process.

Auction appearances are rare and draw intense specialist attention. An NGC AU55 sold for $38,188 at Heritage in August 2013. The 1856-D competes with the 1855-D Type 2 and the 1861-D for the title of most desirable Dahlonega gold dollar, and building any complete set of gold dollars by date and mintmark requires confronting this coin as one of the primary obstacles.