| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3113 | Auction date: 8 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 31206 Price realized: 19,000 USD (Approx. 17,320 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Honduras Republic gold 10 Pesos 1883 AU50 NGC, Tegucigalpa mint, KM58, Fr-5. A most appreciable and desirable date and denomination from Honduras. The 10 and 20 Pesos issues of 1883 remain as absolute rarities, seen at market once every few years despite a group of 13 pieces uncovered in the early 2000s. One of only four pieces have been witnessed in the last decade with each in comparable preservation. However, this example is one of the nicer coins from the recently uncovered group and thus represents an important numismatic item, one which is virtually unattainable to most collectors. The aforementioned group of thirteen 1883 10 Pesos were struck at a slightly later date, as was accepted and legal practice at the Tegucigalpa mint, probably as wedding tokens of a (very) wealthy groom for his future wife. This in indeed confirmed by two almost contemporary and independent reports proving that Honduras did not strike regular issue gold coins until 1888: a testimony from Mr. Consul Herring on the Honduran coinage of 1885 included in the 1888 "Report of the (United States) Director of the Mint" states that "There has never been any gold coined in the country" while Esteban Lazo ("Historia de la Moneda en Honduras", October 16, 1888) indicates that the first gold in denominations of 20, 5 and 1 peso (note the absence of the 10 Pesos denomination) minted in "... May of this year (of 1888) were the first gold coins minted in Honduras and, as such, will represent a milestone in the story of the country". Many of the 13 pieces from the wedding dowry have been harshly cleaned, and most all have at least some evidence of light cleaning. Several have been polished, or have other similar problems. Ex. Heritage Auction #3051 (January 2015, Lot 31192) https://coins.ha.com/itm/honduras/honduras-republic-gold-10-pesos-1883-au50-ngc-/a/3113-31206.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3113-01082024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 8000-12000 USD |  |
Match 1:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3113 | Auction date: 8 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 31203 Price realized: 30,000 USD (Approx. 27,348 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Greece George II gold Proof "Restoration" 100 Drachmai 1935-Dated (1940) PR63 NGC, Heaton mint, KM76, Gardiakos-201, Divo-11, Karamitsos-182. Mintage: 140. One of, if not the most recognizable and contested issues of Greek numismatics from the 20th century, struck in celebration of the 5th anniversary of the monarchy's restoration on November 25, 1935. Mint flash percolates across the expanses, framing the sitter's portrait and enlivening the reverse wreath and denomination, creating a successful composition on a type that only comes to market once every year or so. As such, we expect ample bidder engagement when crossing the auction block. https://coins.ha.com/itm/greece/greece-george-ii-gold-proof-restoration-100-drachmai-1935-dated-1940-pr63-ngc-/a/3113-31203.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3113-01082024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 20000-30000 USD |  |
Match 2:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > CSNS Signature Sale 3115 | Auction date: 8 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 31276 Price realized: 32,000 USD (Approx. 29,770 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Peru Republic gold 100 Soles 1958 MS65 PCGS, Lima mint, KM231, Fr-78. Mintage: 101. This offering represents the pinnacle of rarity within the Peruvian 100 Soles series, a trophy date that poses the single-largest challenge to collectors aiming to complete their sets. Standing as the sole example in PCGS' census and with only eight pieces certified at NGC in total, the date features a mintage drastically lower than its counterparts, being a fifth of the preceding year and 47 times less than in 1959. The present Gem selection positively radiates with lustrous sheen stemming from its fully original characteristics and virtually flawless strike, underscoring its exceptional quality. Given its rarity and outstanding condition tied at the pinnacle of the minuscule certified populations, it offers a chance for series collectors to secure the most elusive and finest example for their collections. From the VMF Collection https://coins.ha.com/itm/peru/peru-republic-gold-100-soles-1958-ms65-pcgs-/a/3115-31276.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3115-05082024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 30000-34000 USD |  |
Match 3:
| Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles > Auction 137 | Auction date: 29 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 1188 Price realized: 7,750 USD (Approx. 7,178 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Hong Kong. Dollar, 1868. Dav-245; KM-10; Prid-3. Queen Victoria. Crowned portrait facing left, her hair tied in a bun and bound by a ribbon, its ends fluttering behind her neck, this image dominating the obverse side of this, the largest coin struck for the British Crown Colony; within the surrounding enclosed circle, VICTORIA at top and QUEEN at bottom, separated by a geometric scroll, the entire motif within a beaded border and high rim. On the reverse side, the same geometric scroll and style of rim entirely surrounds a stylish quatrefoil center containing Chinese characters standing for the English legend around it, ONE DOLLAR at top and HONG KONG 1868 at bottom. Edge is reeded (milled). Pop 11; 2 in 62; 1 in 64. NGC graded MS-61. Estimated Value $7,500 - UP Today's bustling, modern harbor city along the coast of southern China was once a main island and some 230 adjacent islets near Kowloon south of the Shenzhen River (known as the New Territories) whose residents were fishermen, farmers, "charcoal burners," pirates and opium smugglers. It was a primitive place of wooden structures. Near the end of the first Opium War, in 1841 Great Britain's navy seized control for the Crown, creating a free port that offered safety for traders of all kinds (especially in silver and opium, then legal in Great Britain as a curative) while mainland China remained the domain of war lords. It was unstable while Hong Kong was controlled, and under these conditions the little city flourished. The capital was called Victoria. Britain's possession expanded in 1860 to include the peninsula and Stonecutters Island, securing the harbor. In 1898, China granted Britain a 99-year lease. As Hong Kong grew, so did its need for money of more kinds and in greater quantity. From the time of the Opium Wars (1839) onward, the "Spanish dollar"-made from silver ore mined in Mexico, Peru and Bolivia and shipped around the globe-had been used as an accepted standard of monetary (intrinsic) value. These coins were all based on what was called the imperial sterling standard: in other words, they could be trusted to be of solid value. Merchants accepted them and often counter-stamped them (with "chopmarks") to denote acceptance. Beginning in 1863, British-styled coinage began to be issued by London's Royal Mint for the colony-bronze cents and silver 5-cents, 10-cents, 20-cents, a much larger coin variously called a half-dollar and 50-cents, and (for a brief time only) One Dollar pieces. Designs were similar among the denominations but the dollar's styling was the most elaborate (though almost identical to the briefly issued Half Dollar of 1866-68). The dollar size was minted only during 1866, 1867 and 1868. It was the result of pressure from both officialdom and merchants for what was called an Anglo-Chinese Dollar and it was made at a branch of the Royal Mint at Hong Kong which opened in 1866. The currency system was a success but the Hong Kong Mint failed as a venture, its equipment sold to the new mint in Osaka, Japan, that issued its own competing Trade Dollar (Yen) which, although it was beautiful and of fine quality, never found acceptance outside of Japan. Chinese merchants disliked it so much that they discounted it increasingly month by month, causing the Hong Kong Mint to close permanently in 1868. After that year, coins for the colony were again produced at the Royal Mint in London as well as by private mints in England contracted to supply Hong Kong with its needed hard money. Of all the British coins made for use in Hong Kong, the lovely silver dollar of 1866-1868 remains the most desired by collectors worldwide. Most of the mintages entered circulation. "Mint State" and only slightly used pieces are quite rare. They are the best examples of British issues for the colony. |  |
Match 4:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > Showcase Auction 61364 | Auction date: 17 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 21091 Price realized: 1,100 USD (Approx. 1,010 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Bolivia Philip IV "Capitana" Cob 8 Reales 1649 P-Z VF Details (Sea Salvaged) NGC, Potosi mint, KM-19b, Cal-1485. 17.24gm. A bold survivor, despite surface corrosion, from the Potosi Scandal, showing a pleasing and desirable 1649 date, with traces of a possible overdate. Organized by the assayers and other mint workers, the plan behind the "Potosi Scandal" was to reduce the purity of their coins while the thieves kept the remaining silver for themselves. The impacts were immense, even shaking Spain's reputation with the Asian trade, where merchants had the upmost trust for the Spanish Cob's silver quality. A transition of coinages occurred, full of unsuccessful attempts to uniformize the currency, one of them being the countermarking of the scandal coins with Crowned letters (or crowns alone), reducing the 8 Reales to 7 1/2 Reales. To set in stone the "New Potosi mint", a new style of Cobs was created (Pillars and Waves) and the scandal coins, countermarked or not, were to be re-melted/destroyed. The wreck of the Capitana, or the lead ship of the Spanish South Seas (Pacific) Fleet, would become the largest loss ever experienced by the Spanish armada. After striking the Punta Santa Elena reefs, The Jesus María de la Limpia Concepción lost a reported 3,000,000 pesos of silver, extended to a total of approximately 10 million pesos when considering the un-recorded contraband and treasure aboard. Sadly, due to the unregistered cargo that was stored atop the anchor cables and foredeck, the crew was unable to use the anchors for safe stoppage. For context, the entire annual silver production in Peru was around 6-7 million pesos, suggesting that the Concepción was carrying almost one and a half years of peso production. For eight years after the wreck, the Spanish managed to salvage a vast majority of the lost 'official' 3 million pesos and would later recover even more coins, causing a scandal due to the mismatch of monetary records. Ironically, and sadly, the main salvager of the wreck was the Concepción's silver master, Bernardo de Campos, who is blamed for the overload of unregistered contraband that contributed to the ship's tragedy. The lowest deck would be unreachable until modern divers and salvaging equipment were used during the mid-1990s. After equally splitting the recovered coins with the Ecuadorian government in 1998, officially around 2,500 coins would appear at auction in 1999. These were almost exclusively Potosí 8 and 4 Reales that were in excellent condition, including countermarked issues (1649-1652), transitional issues of 1652, and post-transitional pillars-and-waves cobs (1653-1654). https://coins.ha.com/itm/bolivia/bolivia-philip-iv-capitana-cob-8-reales-1649-p-z-vf-details-sea-salvaged-ngc-/a/61364-21091.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-61364-03172024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
Match 5:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > Showcase Auction 61364 | Auction date: 17 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 21508 Price realized: 32,000 USD (Approx. 29,389 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Spain Charles II gold 8 Escudos 1687/3-BR MS63 NGC, Segovia mint, KM197, Fr-219, Cal-1001, Onza-145 (Rare). Without Portuguese arms in shield. A supreme rarity of the Segovian series tremendously represented by the present offering. Once in hand, it is difficult not to take a moment to acknowledge the sheer beauty of this piece, which practically appears as it did when it was produced several hundred years ago. The strike is impeccable, rendering every intricacy of the motifs to their full expression and blasting the fields into a neat expanse of brilliance. We note a small planchet flaw just off the periphery, wholly negligible in light of the supreme and conditional rarity of the specimen. This is the second-finest grade awarded by either grading service, bested only by a single MS64 on the NGC census. Notably, our specimen bests the Paramount example by a full grade point; the Paramount MS62 brought $42,000 in March 2021, a figure we easily expect to exceed with this Choice representative. Arguably to be the most contested piece in this sale. Beginning in the 16th century, the Segovia mint embarked on an industrial modernization of their traditional hammer-struck method of coining, importing novel minting technology from Hall in Austria in the form of rolling machines. The result is readily apparent in the superior quality of Segovian issues--their roundness and uniformity of strike stand out in stark contrast to the often cruder coinage of the other Spanish mints, (which retained inferior production standards even into the 18th century), allowing for a much greater complexity of design upon the coins themselves. The type at hand represents a pinnacle rarity in the Segovian series, as a lack of gold resources in this period resulted in an intrinsic rarity for this emission. https://coins.ha.com/itm/spain/spain-charles-ii-gold-8-escudos-1687-3-br-ms63-ngc-/a/61364-21508.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-61364-03172024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
