The 1804 dollar is among the most coveted of all rare U.S. coins, with only
15 known examples. Strangely enough, no dollars dated 1804 actually were struck
in that year. The United States Mint prepared dollars dated 1803 in 1804, and then
stopped regular production of silver dollars until 1840. The “1804” dollars were
first struck in 1834-35, when the U.S. Department of State decided to give “complete”
type sets of U.S. coins, including the 1804 dollar, as gifts to certain rulers in
Asia willing to grant trade concessions to the United States. In 1962 a set originally
presented to the King of Siam, Rama III, between 1834 and 1836 confirmed this early
purpose for the coins.
Two 1804 dollars are displayed here—a Class I and a Class III. The Class I example
is known as the “Cohen Specimen,” one of hundreds of coins stolen from Willis H.
duPont in 1967 during an armed robbery of his home. DuPont donated the coin to the
ANA Money Museum after it was recovered in 1994. The Class III dollar is known as
the “Idler/Bebee” specimen. This coin changed hands more than 20 times in its history
until Aubrey Bebee purchased it at auction for $302,000 in 1985. He subsequently
donated the piece to the ANA Money Museum.
