One of America’s greatest numismatic treasures has traded hands in a private-treaty sale. The finest-known “Ultra-High Relief,” graded Proof-69 both by NGC and PCGS, was purchased by Certified Assets Management (CAMI) of Wilmington, Delaware, from Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, Texas acting on behalf their client-owner, who remains a significant owner and collector of American numismatic rarities.

This rarity was last offered publicly in the Heritage auction of the Philip Morse collection of St. Gaudens twenties in November of 2005, where it realized $2,990,000, a record at the time.

While the actual price was not disclosed, both parties confirm that the new price substantially exceeds the previous auction price.

Small, golden and bearing the faces of our country’s former presidents, the coins in the U.S. Mint’s new $1 coin series are only a little larger than a quarter. While the U.S. Mint released the coins to educate Americans on our country’s presidential history — only 7 percent of Americans can name the first four presidents — the lesson may go unheeded as many have no interest in the new series. “I can’t say that I care one way or another about the coins,” said Anita Richards. “I don’t usually carry around a lot of change.” Richards is one of many local residents who either knew little about the new $1 coin series or were uninterested.

Economist John V. Kamin of the Forecaster Moneyletter in Tarzana, Calif., recommends to seize control of assets. Surprisingly, most people do not know how their net worth is spread; they have only a vague idea of what percent of their net worth is in their home equity, rental property, pension, IRA, 401K, perhaps a family business, or a hobby with valuables like coin collecting.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. penny is not what it appears to be, and some in Congress would like to see it change further, if not disappear entirely. Because of a surge in the price of copper, the U.S. Mint decided 25 years ago to manufacture the coins almost entirely with zinc, save for the coating on which Abraham Lincoln’s profile is engraved. Now, the fate of the penny is up in the air once again. With the price of zinc soaring amid a worldwide commodities boom, it costs the government about 1.7 cents to make each 1-cent coin — a pretty penny considering roughly 8 billion new ones are placed into circulation annually.