1888-O Eagle - 1888-O $10 PCGS MS62. This Mint State, Southern branch mint 1888-O eagle is lustrous in protected areas and well struck. Full details are present on the centers of the stars, Libertys hair, the eagles neck, and the area to the lower left of the shield. A few abrasion marks, one on Libertys chin, keep this eye-appealing piece from a higher Mint State grade. The surfaces are original and otherwise free of distractions. The scuff marks on both sides are on the holder not the coin.

The New Orleans Mint was authorized in 1835 by President Andrew Jackson, hero of the battle of New Orleans. The bill that Jackson signed also authorized the mints at Charlotte and Dahlonega. William Strickland, a Philadelphia architect designed all three branch mint buildings. The New Orleans Mint building was made in the solid, bulky Greek Revival style of architecture. It was the largest of the three branch mints and located at major port of entry. Unfortunately Strickland did not account for the soft ground around the site. Because of it, the building had to undergo numerous repairs throughout its history.

Authorized to produce gold and silver, the New Orleans Mint struck quarter eagles and dimes in 1839. It operated from 1838 to 1909. In that time period 427 million silver and gold coins with the O mintmark were coined. By the mid 1850s denominations made in New Orleans included three-cent silver pieces, half-dimes, dimes, quarters, half dollars, silver dollars, gold dollars, quarter eagles, three-dollar pieces, half eagles, eagles, and double eagles. The first deposit was of Mexican dollars which amounted to more than 32,400 dollars. The first coins struck were Liberty Seated dimes. Each year between the beginning of August and the end of November, the mint closed because of the annual outbreak of yellow fever.

During the Civil War the Mint was held by the Confederacy and used to produce its coinage. It was the only mint to produce uniquely identifiable Confederate coinage, the 1861 half dollar with Confederate reverse and the copper-nickel cent of the same year. In 1862 the New Orleans Mint was captured by United States Marines commanded by Commodore David Farragut and closed as a minting facility. The mint reopened as an assay office in 1876. Three years later federal coinage resumed. The New Orleans Mint was the only branch mint in the South to continue coinage after the Civil War. It lasted until 1909 when it was displaced by the mints in Denver and San Francisco. From then until 1931, the New Orleans Mint building was used as an assay office. It was then converted to a prison for Prohibition violators. In 1934 the prison was closed, and the Coast Guard took possession of the building. In 1979 it was transferred to Louisiana to be used as a museum.

For those desiring a type set of branch mint coins, this piece is an excellent selection. It is tied for third finest at PCGS with 22 better.