In the upcoming West Palm Beach, FL (Summer FUN) Signature Coin Auction, taking place in West Palm Beach, FL on June 26-29, Heritage will be offering Registry collections from a consignor who specialized in the finest Jefferson nickels. Eight different Jefferson Nickel Registry sets rated #1 All-Time and #1 Current Finest are included under the Compradore name:

1. Basic Set, Circulation Strikes (1938-1964)
2. Basic Set, Circulation Strikes (1965-present)
3. Basic Set, Circulation Strikes (1938-present)
4. With Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes (1938-1964)
5. With Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes (1938-present)
6. War Set with Varieties, Circulation Strikes (1942-1945)
7. Full Steps with Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes (1938-1964)
8. Full Steps with Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes (1938-present)

Compradore also includes additional Registry sets:

1. #2 All-Time and #2 Current Finest: Jefferson Nickels Full Steps Basic Set, Circulation Strikes (1938-1964)
2. #2 All-Time and #2 Current Finest: Jefferson Nickels Date Set, Circulation Strikes (1938-present)
3. #1 All-Time and #1 Current Finest: The Five Cent Type Set (1866-present).

The consignor is a retired stockbroker, with an MBA from the University of Southern California. During the 1990s, he decided to move some assets into coins and succeeded in assembling the #5 PCGS Registry Set of Morgan Dollars (Krispy’s Morgans). After that, he decided to complete the #1 set in Jefferson Nickels.

In the consignor’s words: “I’ve always liked Jefferson nickels. While I was a cashier at the university cafeteria in 1969, I managed to build a complete set (date and mint mark) of Jeffersons from the change in the cash tray. The only coin I couldn’t find was the 1950-D which is really hard to find in circulation. Undaunted, I purchased a nice one from a coin shop for the princely sum of $10 and then turned around and sold the entire set back to the coin shop for $50. My first experience collecting Jeffersons was (to my recollection) immensely rewarding!” (more…)

Dallas, TX. A lengthy list of significant American numismatic rarities is included in the catalog for the June 2008 Summer FUN Signature® Auction. The Official Auction will be held in West Palm Beach, June 26-27, with the concluding Internet sessions on June 28-29. The auction is now posted by Heritage Auction Galleries on their HA.com website, and is available for inspection and bidding.

“The strong market is continuing to bring great rarities onto the Heritage auction block,” commented Heritage President Greg Rohan, “Summer FUN contains rarities from the inventory of Anaconda Rare Coins, the Charleston Collection; the Compradore Registry Collections; the George Gee Collection of Buffalo Nickels; Part One of the Glenwood Collection; Part Two of the Estate of Robert R. Rollins Collection; Part Two of the Estate of Francis A. Sullivan, Jr., and the Fern E. Wagner Trust. Hundreds of consignors are participating in this popular FUN event!”

“Heritage is pleased to present another exciting Summer FUN auction,” concluded Rohan. “Repeating our pleasure from the May 2008 Long Beach auction, we are honored that another professional colleague has entrusted his coin holdings to us. Heritage thanks our friends Adrian Crane and Brandon Kelley for consigning the inventory of Anaconda Rare Coins, without reserve. We wish Adrian well in his future plans in Costa Rica, and know that our bidders will take delight in so many wonderful coins.”

Highlights from Heritage’s Summer FUN Signature Auction:

Lot 8: 1776 Continental Dollar, CURENCY, Newman 1-C, Pewter, AU55 PCGS. Newman 1-C, Breen-1089, R.3.

Lot 134: 1871 1C MS66 Red PCGS. Ex: Joshua and Ally Walsh Collection.

Lot 210: 1864-L on Ribbon Indian Cent, PR64 Brown PCGS, Snow-PR1
From the Fern E. Wagner Trust. (more…)

An amazing Braided Hair large cent struck on a half cent planchet will be making its first public auction appearance at Heritage’s 2008 Baltimore ANA Signature® Auction. The coin has been consigned by a very private Northwest family whose members were unaware of its rarity or significance. The newly discovered rarity will be sold July 30-August 2, 2008, and the lot listing will be available online at HA.com during early July.

“In more than three decades as a numismatist,” commented Heritage’s Senior Numismatist Mark Borckardt, “and after having examined tens of thousands of large cents, I have Never seen a similar error. As soon as I spotted this amazing error coin, I gathered all of the senior numismatists, and none of them could recall a similar piece. When they heard that the coin had sat on the front porch of a house for fifty years in a Mason jar – along with a bunch of other old coins in cans and jars – they were equally astounded! It quickens all of our hearts to imagine that there are still major rarities out there waiting to be discovered!”

Bob Merrill, the former Director of Heritage’s numismatic auctions, discovered the coin while visiting the consignors. “When I pulled the coin out of the Mason jar, I knew that it was fairly unusual, but my attention was rather distracted by the 1794 dollar that came tumbling out behind it. Amazingly, our staff experts in Dallas were able to find a pedigree for the 1794 dollar from 1914!

The Braided Hair large cent error is sized midway between a large cent and a half cent; without an immediate restraining collar, the half cent flan expanded well beyond its normal diameter during striking. Heritage’s experts in Dallas required extra time to examine the error, so it was not included with the rest of the Northwest Collection in the May 2008 Signature Auction.” (more…)