1875 Proof

The 1875 With Motto proof eagle is among the most coveted dates in the entire Liberty Head series, struck during a year when Philadelphia's coinage of ten-dollar gold reached a historic low. Mint records indicate that only 20 proof eagles were prepared for collectors that year, a figure dwarfed even by the modest proof issues of the surrounding decade. The date is doubly famous because the same year produced the celebrated business-strike 1875 eagle, of which barely a hundred pieces left the press and perhaps ten survive today. For the proof, the long-accepted census from David Akers and later confirmed by John Dannreuther suggests roughly seven or eight survivors across all grades, placing it firmly in high Sheldon Rarity-7 territory.

Authenticators rely on diagnostics that separate the proof from any deceptively prooflike business strike. The proof carries a distinct date placement in which the left base of the 1 sits over the left edge of a denticle, and a small spike protrudes from the denticle field below the 7. On the reverse, the top of the second vertical stripe in the shield is incomplete, a die marker carried only on the proof working die for this issue. Surfaces should display the deep watery mirrors and squared rims expected of a hand-struck Philadelphia proof, with frosted devices producing modest cameo contrast on the better-preserved examples; full Deep Cameo or Ultra Cameo designation is essentially unknown for this date because the dies were not heavily frosted before striking. Weight should fall at 16.718 grams within tolerance, and any underweight, lightly struck, or seamed example warrants immediate suspicion.

Long bracketed alongside the 1875 quarter eagle as one of the era's blue-chip proof gold rarities, this issue almost never appears at public auction; when an example does surface, it typically draws activity from advanced cabinet builders pursuing a complete proof Liberty Head eagle set. Heritage and Stack's Bowers offerings from named collections have historically established benchmark prices for the date, with PR-63 to PR-64 examples bringing six-figure sums and finer pieces commanding far more. Collectors approaching this coin are encouraged to study the broader context of the Liberty Head Eagle series history.