1783 John Chalmers Shilling. W-1790. Rarity-4. Birds, Long Worm. MS-62 (NGC).

Important Mint State Long Worm 1783 Chalmers Shilling The Only Chalmers Shilling Ever Certified as Mint State by PCGS 1783 John Chalmers Shilling. W-1790. Rarity-4. Birds, Long Worm. MS-62 (NGC). A superb example of this classic American type, struck in Annapolis when it served as the home of the Continental Congress and, thus, served as the U.S. capital at the time. Striking variations impact the quality of Chalmers shillings as much as pure grade considerations, and this piece ranks with the finest Long Worn shillings known on both fronts. Both sides show frosty luster and lovely originality, with medium silver gray surfaces toned in lightly gold shades across both sides. The obverse is ideally centered, with the thick denticles surrounding the entire circumference. The entire length of the denticles are visible in the southeast quadrant of that side, while they are truncated at the northwest quadrant, where the planchet is trivially out of round. The usual axial misalignment is milder here than often seen, though the right side of the obverse is more deeply struck than the left. The depth of that impression shows the full rounded relief of the birds, the snake, and the legends; it also shows that the snake and birds are essentially free of internal detail. The reverse is aligned to roughly 1 o'clock, with ANNAPOLIS around the top above the handshake. A substantial unstruck area is seen outside the denticles at the base of that side. The legends are complete and bold despite the absence of the denticles across the top of that side. A thin planchet striation, as often seen on these, crosses the reverse, extending from the comma after CHALMERS to below the letters CH of that word. A pair of more subtle striations are seen at the central reverse as well. No significant post-striking flaws are seen: no digs, no scratches, no evidence of poor handling. The aesthetic appeal is immense, which is no less a testament to this coin's quality because it also has a high technical grade. This issue doesn't often survive choice or beautiful. This one breaks that pattern. This coin, last sold by us 15 years ago, remains the only certified Mint State Long Worm we have ever handled. We've sold just three others certified as AU, one each graded 55, 53, and 50, and we've sold nothing better than AU-50 since 2017. Further, it's the only Chalmers shilling of any variety that PCGS has ever graded as Mint State, making this a prime target for connoisseurs of Confederation-era rarities. This piece was certified as PCGS/CAC MS-62 when we last offered it in 2011, and it remains the featured plate at PCGS CoinFacts John Chalmers was a well regarded silversmith in Annapolis when he made the decision to coin his own small change coins out of melted down cut pistareens, which then made up a substantial proportion of the circulating medium in the Chesapeake region. Pistareens were first imported into the region in huge numbers in 1755, when General Edward Braddock ordered £4,000 to £5,000 worth of the lower fineness 2 reales made at Spain's mainland mints. Braddock was in Williamsburg, Virginia when he asked for them and Alexandria, Virginia when he received them. The coins, whose central cross made them easy to cut into halves (worth 10 cents) and quarters (5 cents), quickly spread throughout the region. Braddock first saw their utility while stationed in Gibraltar in 1753 and 1754. By 1784, when Jefferson wrote his Notes on Coinage, he described them - with his usual perspective that places Virginia as the center of the world - as a coin "perfectly familiar to us all." Not coincidentally, Jefferson wrote his Notes on Coinage while he was a Congressional delegate in Annapolis between March and May of 1784. At that time, the Chalmers workshop and mint was in sight of the State House, just two blocks up Cornhill Street from Chalmers' front door. Jefferson and his fellow delegates undoubtedly encountered these Chalmers coins in the temporary capital of the United States. When Washington resigned his commission in the State House chambers on December 22, 1783, he may well have had a Chalmers shilling or two in his pocket. With its distinctive designs, accomplished by engraved Thomas Sparrow, the Chalmers shillings have always been a standout in an advanced cabinet of early American coins. This superlative survivor is perhaps the Chalmers non pareil, fit for a world class collection. Provenance: From the Winslet Collection. Earlier, acquired privately from Don Taxay in the 1970s; Howard Collection; our Chicago ANA Auction of August 2011, lot 7170, as PCGS/CAC MS-62, where it realized $63,250. Featured at PCGS CoinFacts. NGC Census: 2; 0 finer. PCGS# 595. NGC ID: 2AUT. Click here for certification details from PCGS.

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