Smithsonian Barber's Dragon 1/2-Ounce Gold NGC PF70UC

Charles Barber’s Famous… Dragon?

That headline is no mistake! In 1896, the Chinese province of Szechuan needed new minting equipment, and the Ferracute Machine Company of Bridgeton, New Jersey won the bid. For a whopping $13,000, the company agreed to send five coin presses, punching presses, feed attachments and new coin dies.

As part of the package, the company enlisted famous U.S. Mint Engraver Charles Barber to design coins for the province. Using the Chinese Kwangtung dollar as his inspiration, Barber designed and sculpted a number of beautiful dies in five different denominations to demonstrate what the presses could do. A small number of patterns were then struck in silver and bras and handed out to dignitaries who attended the special event in New Jersey prior to the presses being shipped to China. Then, tragedy struck.

The presses arrived at their intended destination, but before the equipment could be even used the minting facility flooded, causing extensive damage to the equipment and dies. The presses would later be restored, but there was just no saving the dies. New ones were created by Chinese artists, but they failed to match Barber’s level of precision.

Today, you can find one set of original patterns in the Shanghai Mint’s museum collection, and another at the Smithsonian® numismatic collection. It’s from these patterns that new dies were made, allowing us to bring you these fantastic proofs struck at the prestigious Singapore Mint!

You can add this half-ounce proof struck in highly-pure 99.9% gold. The gleaming design of Barber’s magnificent Chinese dragon curling around the center of the medal’s reverse is an unsurpassed example of the engraver’s art. Your proof has also been inspected, certified and graded by the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), to be in perfect Proof-70 Ultra Cameo (PF70UC) condition, a distinction that means your perfectly-graded proof will have ZERO imperfections – showing all features and fields exactly as the engraver and mint intended!

Only a limited number of exclusive Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold reproductions were struck and authorized for release by the Smithsonian and each includes an exclusive authorized Smithsonian proprietary label. Nearly 125 years in the making, you can finally add Charles Barber’s famous Dragon to your collection! Order yours today!

• BASED ON ORIGINAL DESIGN CREATED BY CHARLES BARBER – The Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold Medal is based on the original design created in 1896 by U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Charles Barber. The design – and the presses to strike the coins – was requested by the government of Imperial China from the Ferracute Machine Company, which had supplied coin presses to the U.S. Mint. Only a few patterns were ever struck before the presses were severely damaged by a flood in China’s Szechuan Province. The patterns are part of the Smithsonian’s numismatic collection.

• STRUCK IN HIGHLY-PURE GOLD – These Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold Medals are struck in 99.9% gold.

• GRADED IN PERFECT PROOF CONDITION – Your Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold Medal has been inspected, certified and graded by the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC), to be in perfect Proof-70 Ultra Cameo (PF70UC) condition, a distinction that means your perfectly-graded proof will have ZERO imperfections – showing all features and fields exactly as the engraver and mint intended!

• INCLUDES EXCLUSIVE AUTHORIZED LABEL – Only a limited number of exclusive Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold reproductions were struck and authorized for release by the Smithsonian. They were specially struck at the prestigious Singapore Mint and each includes an exclusive authorized Smithsonian proprietary label.

• EXTREME LIMITED EDITION – The maximum worldwide edition for this stunning proof has been set at only 500.

Appealing to collectors on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, the Smithsonian Barber Dragon Half-Ounce Gold Proof is sure to be in high demand. Don’t wait another 125 years – and with only 500 half-ounce gold proofs available in the world you need to secure yours now!