Two previously unknown gold patterns of the 1907 Saint-Gaudens $10 eagle design have been discovered.
Numismatic researcher Roger W. Burdette announced the find on April 10.
The editors of the United States Pattern Coin book at Whitman Publishing LLC are reviewing them to consider whether to include them in the tenth edition.
According to Burdette, the new patterns are preliminary versions of coins cataloged as J-1901 (knife rim/periods, old Judd 1774) and J-1903 (normal rim/periods, old Judd 1775), but they were struck with irregular stars on the edge.
Using documents from the U.S. Mint archives, researchers confirmed the two pieces were struck for review by Treasury officials and the President before pieces with normal stars were made.
Burdette says the documents refer specifically to the irregular stars and that Philadelphia Mint engraver Charles Barber was working on a corrected edge collar. ?This is an example of how information from coins and original documents can combine to improve our knowledge of numismatics,? said Burdette.
Three knife rim/periods versions were reviewed, along with two normal rim/periods coins. Those quantities are consistent with those mentioned in the Mint documents.
