1870-CC

The 1870-CC stands as the very first Liberty Head eagle ever struck at the Carson City Mint, an institution that opened that same year specifically to convert Comstock Lode silver and Nevada-sourced gold into federal coinage rather than ship raw bullion across hostile terrain to San Francisco or Philadelphia. With a mintage of just 5,908 pieces, the inaugural CC eagle pairs first-year-of-issue cachet with genuine condition rarity, a combination that has made it the single most expensive Carson City eagle on the market despite the fact that Doug Winter ranks the 1879-CC as fractionally rarer in raw numbers.

Winter estimates roughly 50 to 60 survivors across all grades, with the bulk concentrated in Very Good through Very Fine and only four or five genuine About Uncirculated coins accounted for. No Mint State examples are confirmed. Authentication is paramount at this price level. Confirm weight at the 16.718-gram standard for the 90% gold, 10% copper alloy on a 27-millimeter planchet, and verify specific gravity in the 17.1 to 17.2 range; gold-plated base-metal counterfeits fall well short. The CC mintmark on the reverse demands particular scrutiny because added-mintmark fakes built on common-date Philadelphia eagles are a documented threat for first-year-of-mint Carson City issues. Examine the area beneath the eagle for tooling marks, solder residue, or grain inconsistency between the mintmark metal and surrounding field. Winter further cautions that many apparent EF coins offered on the market have been recolored or lightly doctored to mask wear, and he recommends preferring an honest, original VF over a suspect EF.

Demand sits at the intersection of three powerful collecting bases: Liberty eagle date specialists, Carson City completists, and first-year-of-mint enthusiasts. The finest known example, a PCGS AU58 with CAC approval rediscovered in a Canadian family holding, realized $1,080,000 at Stack's Bowers' August 2023 ANA sale, the second-highest price ever paid for any Carson City gold coin behind the 1870-CC double eagle. More attainable VF and lower-EF coins still command strong five-figure prices and rarely linger when offered. For background on type evolution and the broader Carson City run from 1870 through 1893, see the Liberty Head Eagle series history.