1849 PS$1 Pacific Company Silver Pattern

Coin / United States of America / $1 (One Dollar) / Patterns & Die Trials / 1849 / California

The Pacific Company gold dollar was believed to only exist as a pattern in silver until 1999, when a metal detectorist discovered an example buried in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. A second specimen was properly attributed by numismatist Stuart Levine in 2002, after being misidentified as a gilt silver pattern for nearly a century. In 2022, a third example appeared, having been held by a family since the 1920s when it was pulled from the coin box in a San Francisco cable car. All known pieces are struck in debased gold (approximately .600-fine).

Country United States of America
Year 1849
Serie Patterns & Die Trials
Denomination $1 (One Dollar)
Mint California