What is the value of a Blake and company assayers 20 gold coin from 1855 with a gold content of 0900?

Answer 1

I can not honestly answer that question but I do know about a company that will give you free estimates. The name of the company is American Gold & Silver Exchange. There website is http://www.americangoldandsilverexchange.com.

Hope this helps!!

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Blake and Co. were assayers in 1854 in California. It is also the year the San Francisco mint started and private companies were ordered to stop production of coins. I no longer have the catalog on Blake & Co. assay bars.

This 1855 date is one of the most commonly encountered gold rush replica coins. It is a copy of a Blake & Company $20 gold piece. Those brass copies show a coining press on one side and concentric circles on the other. Chrysler Corporation mass produced these replicas in 1969 as part of a promotion for their "Gold Duster" car, and they are still fooling people to this day. The reproduction coins were not struck in solid gold, so that is a quick way to tell if you own a reproduction. A real Blake & Company $20 gold piece weighs 32.9 grams, but the copy weighs less. If it is the proper weight please write me again.

It is my understanding that only 2 genuine specimens exist, one in the Smithsonian and the other was in the Bank of California coin collection. As I stated, Blake & Company was a prominent assayer in the gold rush and made ingots from raw gold. The few genuine coins that exist from this assayer are believed to be patterns for coins they were considering mass producing.

One expert in the field after reading about Blake & Co., its many gold bars, and few coins, and comparing previous books with the Sotheby Auction catalog of the S.S. Central America lots, I now doubt the ultimate authenticity of the "Coin Press" issue. Blake & Co. did advertise in San Francisco newspapers, offering to turn miner's gold into bars or coins. Many bars from Blake were recovered from the Central America, but no coins. It seems most likely to me that Blake would have made coins had any customer asked him, but none did.

You can frequently find these reproductions on E-bay by searching in the coins category with the keywords Blake & Co., and they usually fetch $5-$20.

A specimen like this, if real, will have to be appraised by an experienced expert. There were many counterfeits made prior to 1969 as well.

If real it is valuable and should be sent to a third party grading and certification service. Like ANACS, PCGS or NGC.

If you still think it is authentic and need help finding a qualified coin person in your area feel free to write me back for the information.

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Coin-Collecting-2297/1855-Blake-Co-Assayers-2.htm

Answer 2

The value of a Blake and Company Assayers 20 gold coin from 1855 with a gold content of 0.900 would depend on factors like its condition, rarity, and collector demand. As a rough estimate, its value may be based on the current market price of gold and numismatic premium attached to the specific coin's characteristics. It is advisable to consult with a coin expert or appraiser for a more accurate valuation.