1873-S Closed 3

San Francisco's contribution to the 1873 Double Eagle ledger reached 1,040,600 pieces across both date-logotype subvarieties, and the Closed 3 represents the earlier of the two punches sent west from Philadelphia. Engraver William Barber cut his original 1873 date punches in late 1872 with the upper and lower knobs of the digit set so close together that Chief Coiner A.L. Snowden complained in writing to Mint Director James Pollock on January 18, 1873, arguing the numeral read more like an 8. Barber recut the punch with a wider, more legible Open 3, and the changeover rolled out to the branch mints over the following months. CK-6511 captures that opening chapter at the San Francisco facility.

The geographic split between the two 1873 logotypes is the key to understanding this issue. At Philadelphia the Open 3 dominates surviving populations, but San Francisco shipped its Closed 3 dies first and used them long enough that the variety now outnumbers the SF Open 3 by roughly three to one in modern census data. Douglas Winter notes the Closed 3 is more readily located through About Uncirculated grades yet remains scarce in MS62 and extremely rare in MS63. PCGS records three coins at MS63 as the finest certified, with 56 in MS62 and a small group at MS62+ trailing them; NGC has not certified an example finer than MS62 in any quantity.

Strike on a typical Closed 3 reflects San Francisco Type 2 die practice of the period: heavy radial flow lines, satisfactory color, and luster that Winter rates above the Open 3 counterpart, paired with the bag-handling abrasions endemic to coins shipped in $5,000 sealed sacks rather than circulated in commerce. One of the best-known examples is the PCGS MS62 Closed 3 recovered in the 2013 Saddle Ridge Hoard, which entered the population report as a Top Pop coin for that hoard's contribution. Authentication matters here because the variety premium evaporates on any holder that simply reads "1873-S" without the Closed 3 attribution. For the broader context, see our Liberty Head Double Eagle series history.