Stack’s Bowers Galleries is thrilled to present the incredible 1879 Quintuple Stella from the Garrett Collection in their Official Auction of the Whitman Coins & Collectibles Baltimore Expo this March. Continue reading
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Over $15.4 Million in U.S. Coins and Currency Sold at Stack’s Bowers Galleries’ Official Auction of the 2017 Whitman Coins & Collectibles Winter Expo
The official auction of the 2017 Whitman Coins & Collectibles Winter Expo held by Stack’s Bowers Galleries was an astounding success, realizing over $13.3 million across eight sessions of United States coinage and related issues. Nearly $2 million in paper money also crossed the block with superb results. The sale was highlighted by significant collections including the Cardinal Collection, the Alexander Collection, and the Murray Hill Collection, in addition to many other cabinets that created great excitement and attracted enthusiastic bidding. (All quoted prices to follow include the 20% buyer’s premium.) Continue reading
1858-O Liberty Head Double Eagle Featured at Rarities Night in Baltimore
Among the many highlights of the Stack’s Bowers Official Auctions of the Whitman Baltimore Winter Expo will be found “the rarest of the rare” – the very finest 1858-O, graded MS-63 by NGC.
Stack’s Bowers Official Auction Brings In More Than $5.3 Million Dollars at the Whitman Baltimore Summer Expo
The Stack’s Bowers Galleries Official Auction of the June 2017 Whitman Baltimore Summer Expo offered fresh material and exceptional rarities, resulting in the sale of over $5.3 million in U.S. coins.
From Stacks Bowers Galleries: The Blue Moon Collection Part II
Did you know Stack’s Bowers Galleries is offering the The Blue Moon Collection Part II in their upcoming official auction of the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Summer Expo?
The Blue Moon Collection Part II is the sequel to Part I that they offered in March of this year. It includes a wide selection of coins from scarce to extremely rare and popular. Highlights include a Gem 1858/7 Flying Eagle cent, a simply marvelous Super Gem 1916-D Full Bands dime (without doubt one of the best known 20th century rarities), a Gem Proof 1864 Small Motto two-cent piece, a Mint State 1901-S quarter, and more.
These were bought many years ago by a client who purchased exclusively from Stack’s and they have been off the market for decades! This collection will cross the block on Thursday, June 22 beginning at 5 PM EDT.
Stack’s Bowers To Offer Choice Dahlonega Mint 1839 Liberty Head Half Eagle At The Whitman Baltimore Expo
The half eagles struck at the Dahlonega Mint in 1839 represent a very significant and popular issue from that Georgia mint. Our June 2017 Official Auction of the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo in Baltimore will feature a delightful AU-58 1839-D half eagle that is among the finest survivors known.
1839 was the second year of production for the Dahlonega facility, but the first year that both quarter eagles and half eagles were struck. Liberty’s portrait on the 1839-D half eagle is considerably different than that used the following year and throughout the rest of the Liberty Head series. It exhibits deep curvature to the neck truncation and significant distance between the back of the portrait and star 13. Similarly, it is the only Dahlonega issue with the mintmark on the obverse above the date, as this feature was moved to the reverse below the eagle starting in 1840.
Though production at Dahlonega would peak near 100,000 half eagles for some dates in the 1840s and ’50s, just 18,939 half eagles were stuck in 1839. From this mintage, only 125 to 150 are thought to remain for today’s collectors, with the majority in Extremely Fine preservation or lower. Specialist Doug Winter notes in his 2003 reference that AU-50 examples are “quite rare,” and that survivors are “very rare in the higher About Uncirculated grades.”
Indeed, Choice AU pieces like the one offered in our June auction are remarkably elusive. PCGS has certified only six other examples at the current grade, with just seven pieces finer; the highest graded is MS-62. This coin ranks among the most handsomely preserved examples of this issue and certainly approaches the lower end of the Condition Census.
The surfaces are generously lustrous and frosty throughout, with just the slightest traces of friction across the most exposed regions. Uniform golden tones complement the exceptional preservation, delivering gorgeous eye appeal.
This important 1839-D half eagle will be featured in our June 2017 Official Auction of the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo in Baltimore. To secure your copy of the catalog for this event or to consign to a future auction, contact our offices at 1-800-458-4646 or email info@StacksBowers.com.
Pogue Collection Surpasses $106 Million
Setting a new world record for the most valuable numismatic cabinet ever sold, and perhaps a new world record for any holding of collectibles in any field, the D. Brent Pogue Collection netted total sales of $106,720,432.25 over the course of five auction events held from 2015 to 2017 by Stack’s Bowers Galleries of Santa Ana, California and Sotheby’s. Tonight’s fifth auction yielded sales of $21,402,213.75, highlighted by the Dexter specimen of the legendary 1804 dollar, which brought just under $3.3 million. The Pogue Collection, assembled by father and son Mack and Brent Pogue over the course of more than three decades, focused on the highest quality United States coins dated from 1793 to 1840.
Outside of the famous 1804 dollar, one of the most legendary rarities in any American collecting field, the sale was led by the finest known specimen of the 1811 half cent, graded MS-66 RB (PCGS), which brought $998,750 in fevered bidding. A Sheldon-13 1793 Liberty Cap cent graded AU-58 (PCGS) and featured on the famous 1869 Levick Plate, brought $940,000, making it the most valuable circulated cent ever sold. The two 1793 Liberty Cap cents included in tonight’s auction brought a combined $1.316 million, more than 65 million times their face value. The total face value of the cents in the sale, the highest quality group of early United States cents ever sold in a single auction, was $1.42. They brought a total of $12,026,653.75, nearly 8.5 million times their value as pocket change.
Other highlights included one of four known Original Proof 1852 half cents, graded Proof-65 RD (PCGS); considered the finest of the four, the Pogue specimen brought $493,500. A gem MS-65 (PCGS) 1801 dollar, once the property of Col. E.H.R. Green and Amon Carter, sold for $399,500, and an 1802 Restrike dollar in Proof-64 (PCGS) realized $352,500. Early date cents brought extremely strong prices, including those dated 1794 (the finest known 1794 Head of 1793 at $540,500 and the finest known Sheldon-24 “Apple Cheek” in magnificent PCGS MS-67 RB at $446,500), 1796 (the stunning 1796 Sheldon-84 Liberty Cap in PCGS MS-66+ RB at $705,000 and the highest graded 1796 Draped Bust cent, certified as MS-66+ BN by PCGS, at $329,000), 1799 (the finest known of the date, graded MS-61 BN by PCGS, at $540,500), and 1804 (also the finest known of the date, graded MS-63 BN by PCGS, sold for $540,500). The 1823 Newcomb-2 cent graded MS-66 BN (PCGS) brought a new record for any example of the Matron Head type, realizing $376,000. That record was tied just a few minutes later when the finest known 1839/6 cent, graded MS-65+ BN (PCGS), brought the same sum.
The auction was strong beyond the most notable and most expensive pieces. An 1817 15 Star cent in MS-65 BN (PCGS) sold for $76,375, only slightly more than an 1824 N-2 graded MS-66 RB (PCGS) that brought $70,500. The same price was paid for the finest known 1826/5 cent, graded MS-66 BN (PCGS), while an 1831 N-3 in MS-66+ RB (PCGS) stunned onlookers at $105,750, a new record for the date. A MS-66 RD (PCGS) 1852 N-22 wowed those present as it sold for $94,000, leading all late date cents sold. The most expensive Liberty Seated coin sold in the sale was the MS-65 (PCGS) 1839 No Drapery half dollar, from the Lawrence Stack Type Set, that found a new home at $141,000.
“The Pogue Collection sale was a phenomenal success. Part V surpassed our highest estimates by more than $3 million, and dozens of coins set new world records for examples of their date,” said Stack’s Bowers Galleries President Brian Kendrella.
The D. Brent Pogue Collection Sale Part V to Offer Famous Dexter 1804 Silver Dollar
Stack’s Bowers Galleries and Sotheby’s are pleased to present Part V of their auction program of the D. Brent Pogue Collection of early United States coinage. The auction will take place beginning at 6:30 PM on March 31, 2017, at the Carriage House of the Evergreen Museum & Library in Baltimore. Continue reading
Stack’s Bowers Galleries to Showcase Important Collections in their March 2017 Baltimore Auction
Stack’s Bowers Galleries is delighted to present an incredible offering of world-class collections as part of their Official Auction of the Whitman Coins & Collectible Expo this March in Baltimore, Maryland. Anchored by the exceptional Blue Moon Collection, Part I, and the Collections of Dr. Gordon Shaw and Anthony Bettencourt, this event will showcase fresh, high quality material that is sure to excite collectors. Continue reading
Last Chance to Consign to The Blue Moon Collection
In the Stack’s Bowers Galleries tradition of presenting old-time cabinets at auction, The Blue Moon Collection will delight bidders in our upcoming sale to be held March 29-31, 2017, in Baltimore, Maryland. The collection was started over 50 years ago and comprises chiefly private acquisitions from Stack’s along with astute auction purchases from many of our most famous sales of the 1970s and 1980s, including the Garrett Collection (1976), the 1976 ANA auction, and Auction ’81. Continue reading