Legend Rare Coin Auctions, in conjunction with Elizabeth Coggin Numismatics, is thrilled to offer Part IV of The Boylston Collection. The first three installments were each highly successful events testifying to the unmatched quality of the collection. Many record prices were realized, Liz was proven correct when she said in her introduction to Part I: “One of the inadvertent results of collecting so many high grade white pieces, tucked away over the past two and a half decades, is the creation of demand and price appreciation for those very same coins. Collector demand, coupled with the influx of fresh coins to the marketplace after so many years, is sure to create unfettered enthusiasm and spirited bidding!” We expect Part IV will generate the same fervor amongst collectors.
Featured is an assemblage of 131 Mint State and Proof Seated Liberty Half Dollars including two incredibly rare Patterns, the 1862 J-293 and the 1863 J-344. Over the past 25 years, the Boylston Collector meticulously gathered high end, finest known and famous pedigreed Seated Half dollars with similar eye appeal. His concentration on lustrous, mostly untoned white coins and the black and white cameo contrast of the proof coins proves his discerning eye.
While there are coins that will whet the appetite of collectors at every level. The highlights include: an 1846 Tall Date in NGC MS65+ CAC, an 1853 with Arrows and Rays in NGC MS65, an 1873-CC with Arrows in NGC MS64, an 1873-S with Arrows in PCGS MS65, an 1874-CC with Arrows in PCGS MS64, an 1840 in NGC PR65, 1841 NGC PR65+, an 1847 in PCGS PR64, an 1848 in PCGS PR64, an 1855 with Arrows in PCGS PR64 CAM CAC, an 1858 in NGC PR67, an 1860 in PCGS PR67 CAM CAC, and an 1873 with Arrows in NGC PR67 UCAM.
There is no doubt in our minds that when the hammer falls on this latest portion of the Boylston Collection there will be many elated winners with lovely new additions to their cabinets. Get those paddles and bid buttons ready, it is sure to be a robust competition. On behalf of Legend Rare Coin Auctions and Elizabeth Coggin Numismatics, we wish everyone the best of luck!
LOT 171 | 50C 1853 ARROWS AND RAYS. PCGS MS65
In the early 1850s, as huge amounts of gold were flowing east from the California Gold Rush, the value of silver rose against the value of gold, and silver was hoarded. In 1853, Congress passed a law reducing the weight of half dimes, dimes, quarters and half dollars to keep the ratio of gold to silver even, and allow silver to circulate again. To differentiate the new weight standard, arrows were added to the date and rays were added to the reverse of the quarter and half, creating an important one year only sub-type. In 1854, the rays were removed from the reverse, mint officials citing striking difficulty. Arrows remained at the date through 1855.
The presently offered GEM example boasts a lovely satiny mint frost on pearlescent silver surfaces. A faint glint of pale champagne-gold can be seen as the lustrous surfaces are rotated in a light. Sharply struck, Liberty's drapery and eagle's feathers are all crisply rendered and have bold definition. Some light roller lines can be found in the fields, as made, as well as some spidery, thin die cracks on both sides. A strong glass reveals minor breaks in the frost and perhaps a light line or two, but these are not distracting to the overall appearance of this MS65.
PCGS 21, NGC 17. The most recent PCGS MS65 to sell in auction sold way back in September 2017! Clearly, despite the Population figure, these do not appear with frequency. The current PCGS Price Guide value is $30,000. Just 15 are graded finer, most clustered in the MS66 and MS66+ levels (though we certainly suspect there is some duplication). A wonderful coin for a GEM type set or advanced Seated Liberty half dollar set.
LOT 192 | 50C 1872-S NGC MS66
Tied for FINEST GRADED at NGC, this is a bold and brilliant GEM! The mintage of 580,000 was delivered right into circulation; Mint Sate survivors are VERY RARE in any grade, EXCESSIVELY so in such a lofty state of preservation, and NONE ARE FINER at NGC.
A mostly brilliant silver gleams with an intense mint luster. A faint blush of pale lilac-purple mingles with a dusting of clear gold and some deeper tone at the peripheries. Sharply struck up the devices are crispy defined. A strong glass will aid in the location of some very minor contact. The eye appeal is excellent.
PCGS 0, NGC 3. This GEM last sold in the October 2015 Gene Gardner Collection sale for $12,925. The current Collectors Universe value is listed at $25,000. The Eliasberg Collection coin is now a PCGS MS66+, the single finest example of the date. This one is tied with the NGC-MS66 Col. Green- Eric P. Newman coin. An important opportunity for anyone working on a SUPERB set, do not let this GEM pass you by!
LOT 198 | 50C 1874-CC ARROWS. PCGS MS64
An outstanding example of this conditionally VERY RARE Carson City issue. The Coinage Act of 1873 changed much of the coinage system in the United States: it eliminated the 2 cent piece, 3 cent silver, the half dime, and the standard silver dollar, and authorized the Trade dollar for the Asian export trade. In addition it very slightly adjusted the weights of dimes, quarters, and halves. As the highest denomination struck for domestic circulation, the half dollar saw extensive circulation. While 59,000 examples were struck, few were saved at the time of issue, and any Mint State 74-CC half is a major prize for the collector.
The presently offered coin is very CHOICE quality and ranks among the top FIVE examples graded by PCGS. Incredibly lustrous with a more than subtle reflective texture in the fields. The devices are nicely rendered, crisply defined from an exacting blow from the dies. Dappled iridescent toning, shades of olive-tan, golden-russet, and pewter-gray with lilac-slate accents. Some light marks and lines, some mint made, some made after this coin came off the dies, can be found with effort, but are unobtrusive to the eye appeal.
Ex Wayne S. Rich Collection, Bowers & Merena, March 2002, lot 2492; Eugene Gardner Collection; Heritage's sale of the Gardner Collection, Part IV, October 2015, lot 98693.
PCGS 3, NGC 3. It seems like only yesterday, but the Gardner sales were eight years ago! This coin brought $38,775 back then. Only two are graded finer at PCGS and the PCGS Price Guide value in MS64 is $55,000. We expect very strong bidding for this important CONDITION RARITY. Good luck.
LOT 222 | 50C 1840 NGC PR65
Ex Pittman, as noted on the insert.
A very important and famous rarity, the FINEST KNOWN of a mintage of only six pieces.
Watery, mirrored reflection beams from nearly PRISTINE fields. Twirl the coin in a light, and let the mirrors really flash through the rich azure, pearly-pewter, and tangerine-rose toning--it really sparkles like a mountain lake at sunset. The devices are sharply struck up and have full definition throughout. You can look for hours to try and find a single flaw worthy of mention and you will come up short. The eye appeal is excellent.
Ex. James Kelly, via private sale in 1946 to John J. Pittman; John J. Pittman Collection, David Akers, May 1998, lot 1519; Phil Kaufman Collection; Kaufman Collection, Part 1, Heritage, August 2007, lot 1782; Eugene H. Gardner Collection; Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part III, Heritage, May 2015, lot 98499.
PCGS 1, NGC 2. This coin sold for $49,350 in a weaker market--prior to that it sold for $109,250 in 2007. Only one other example is thought to have real claims to a GEM grade, the Lichtenfels-Norweb piece, which may be the PCGS PR65 listed. This is an important opportunity for any advanced collector who understands just how rare these early Seated Proofs are. We anticipate very strong bidding when this one crosses the block. Good luck!
LOT 223 | 50C 1841 NGC PR65+
SOLE FINEST GRADED! An exceedingly rare Proof half dollar of which it is estimated that just 8 coins are known! The exact mintage remains a mystery, as the Mint did not keep records of Proof production of the Seated halves in the 1840s. In fact, the delivery of these rarities was extremely limited as they were produced for inclusion in specialty presentation Proof sets.
Radiant fields are deeply reflective and richly toned in steel gray hues with accents of gold and eggplant on the obverse and a lighter reverse with an array of dusty rose, eggplant and gunmetal blue. There are a few very faint hairlines seen when tilted in the light and are commensurate with the grade also only noticeable with strong magnification. This piece looks like it was coined yesterday, not almost 200 years ago, as the design elements are as crisp and fully rendered as you could possibly hope for!
Any pre-1858 Seated half dollars are classic rarities in their own right, but the 1841 is remarkably so and is seldom offered for sale either at public auction or privately unless it is part of an important collection.
Ex Superior's Boys Town Sale, May 1990, lot 3803; Silbermunzen Collection, Heritage, May 2008, lot 718; Eugene H. Gardner Collection, Part III, Heritage, May 2015, lot 98500, as NGC PR64 CAC; unknown intermediaries, Stack's Bowers, March 2016, lot 13079 (as NGC PR65+); our consignor.
PCGS 0, NGC 1. The current Collectors Universe value is listed at $70,000. This exact coin sold for $30,550 in March 2016 (a much weaker market). With an estimated mintage of just 10 coins, and two of those permanently impounded in the Smithsonian Institution and the American Numismatic Society, a mere 8 coins remain for private collections. This is the FINEST SPECIMEN graded at both PCGS and NGC, and represents a possible once in a lifetime opportunity for the astute collector. Worthy of a world class collection! Good luck!