4 Dollars, Pattern, United States,1879
date: label: Date made
content: 1879
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: One (1) 4 dollar coin, pattern
label: Description (Brief)
content: United States, 1879
label: Description (Brief)
content: Obverse Image: Left-facing Liberty head with flowing hair. Stars between all letters around edge of coin.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Obverse Text: 6 / G / .3 / S / .7 / C / 7 / G / R / A / M / S / 1879
label: Description (Brief)
content: Reverse Image: Star in center.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Reverse Text: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / FOUR DOL. / E PLURIBUS UNUM / DEO EST GLORIA / ONE STELLA / 400 CENTS
label: Description
content: The four-dollar gold piece, or Stella, was the brainchild of the United States minister to Austria-Hungary, John A. Kasson. Kasson wanted an American gold coin that would trade on a par with a number of European counterparts, and the Stella seemed to be the answer.
label: Description
content: Patterns were struck in a variety of metals, with two depictions of Liberty. George T. Morgan was responsible for this version, a goddess with coiled hair. Charles E. Barber contributed the second idea, a Liberty with flowing hair.
label: Description
content: At the time, aluminum was popular as a pattern coinage metal. It was scarce, and it took a lovely impression from the dies. Experts call this piece a high Rarity-7, suggesting that four to six pieces exist.
label: Description
content: [reference no. Judd 1640]
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: Place Made
content: United States
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection
label: See more items in
content: Coins, Currency and Medals
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Glossary of Coins and Currency Terms
label: Related Web Publication
content: http://americanhistory.si.edu/coins/glossary.cfm
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Harvey G. and Lawrence R. Stack
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1993.0532.0003
label: accession number
content: 1993.0532
label: catalog number
content: 1993.0532.0003
objectType: label: Object Name
content: coin
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: gilt aluminum (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 21.6 mm; 27/32 in