1852-O $2.50 (1852-O Quarter Eagle) NGC MS62. This New Orleans 1852-O Quarter Eagle is certified by NGC in a new holder. While the New Orleans mint is notoriously known for weak strikes, this coin is razor sharp with only the slightest weakness near the center of the reverse.

140,000 pieces were struck in 1852 at this southern-mint. With the San Francisco Mint not yet open, the gold that was flooding out of the California gold mines was very large and never before seen in the US. All this gold had to be transported west if the depositor wished to have his gold minted in federal coins. The private companies that struck gold coins in California, in particular in 1852, did not have quite the reputation of the official US government mints.

As a result, mintages of gold coins increased during the 1850s at all US mints, especially before 1854, when the San Francisco Branch Mint opened. With this increase in mintage however, also the circulation of gold coins increased, making uncirculated gold coins from this era very scarce in uncirculated grades.

This coin is the so-called Extra Heavy O variety, Breen-6219. In his gigantic encyclopedia, Breen considered this variety to be very rare. In the 2nd edition of his book Gold Coins of the New Orleans Mint, Douglas Winter has a somewhat different opinion.

The present piece is a truly uncirculated coin, with full satin-like luster and moderate prooflike fields. Although some blemishes are noted in the fields, this coin does not show the heavy bagmarks commonly found with this issue. Toned to a lovely orange-gold color, this coin is totally original and a very nice example of a branch-mint quarter eagle that circulated in antebellum America.

In its population report, NGC shows that this coin is tied for second best with 7 others in MS62 with 4 better.