***Auction Highlight*** 1857-s Three Dollar Gold 3 Graded au55+ By SEGS. Lustrous honey gold with much mint brilliance in the protected areas. A popular branch mint issue, one of just 14,000 examples of the date struck in San Francisco. Of the surviving specimens, perhaps 150 to 250 all told, the vast majority of survivors are VF and EF. Indeed, at AU, a prominent rarity in the series presents itself. In The United States $3 Gold Pieces 1854-1889 By Q. David Bowers, the author notes the following about this low-mintage issue: "This small mintage was quickly placed into circulation. None were saved for numismatic purposes." Attractive AU specimens are few and far between in today's numismatic marketplace, and serious bidding attention is urged when this lot crosses the auction block. I have included an au55 & au58 example for your comparison.