New Orleans coinages were limited, especially after 1853. Most of the final date. 1861-O was made under the Confederacy. As the same dies were used before and after the rebels seized the branch mint, it is impossible to tell with certainty whether any given coin was made under the Union or the rebels. But as the Union made only [5,000] out of [17,741], the chances are 71% (or 7 to 3 odds) that your specimen left the press while rebel flags flew over the building.

Auction Appearances and Collateral Evidence: The 1861-O double eagle is very rare and one of the more historically interesting Type 1 double eagles. The issue was struck by three different governmental authorities. It has been estimated that the federal government struck 5,000 coins, the state of Louisiana 9,750 coins, and the Confederacy 2,991 coins. Unfortunately, it cannot be determined with certainty which mint struck which coins. There are probably fewer than 200 coins known in all grades, most of which are Very Fine or Extremely Fine. High-grade examples are very rare and desirable. Most display partially prooflike surfaces. The finest known example, which resides in the collection of the Smithsonian, is an amazing AU-53 coin with prooflike surfaces.

Number of Appearances: 94 (21%)