This multimillion dollar collection came to us totally unexpected. The collector had been following our LV Collection (where that collector ran out of room to keep his coins) and realized he had the same predicament. We got a call to go check out this deal. Not knowing what to expect we brought a small empty rolling bag. When we arrived at this collector’s house we saw a few double row boxes stacked up. We figured he had slightly exaggerated about the size of his collection and this would be a quick and easy trip-NOT!

After going through the coins and giving him our opinion, he asked “are you ready for more?” we said sure. Next thing we knew, there were 220 DOUBLE ROW boxes of certified coins next to us! The boxes contained coins from OLD HOLDERED MS 65FB Mercs to GEM MS68 Morgans all PCGS or NGC certified! One box that stood out was full of PCGS/NGC MONSTER MS67 Walkers-including some better dates! Mr. McClaren explained to us he had been collecting these coins over the past 20+ years and stopped buying in quantity a few years ago. He too ran out of storage space at his bank. When he looked at us and asked how we’d get all this back to NJ, we figured he meant some time later on. Nope, he said he didn’t want to lug the stuff back to the bank, take it all home now! So needless to say, we had to rent a 16 foot truck and suffer through a bumpy ride back to NJ. We can not even imagine how big or how many safety deposit boxes he had all this stuffed in!

There are also hundreds of rolls of RAW Dimes through Morgans. After a quick look of the raw coins, we saw many GEM’s as well as many unbelievable GEM certified coins! This certainly was not your typical big pile of junk/modern Proof Set deal we so often see. We will post a few of the McClaren coins today. We expect to be posting them possibly through the end of the year! Like us, you’ll be totally amazed at what is in the collection-especially the stunning quality of so many coins.

For more information about the collection and availability Please Contact Legend Numismatics

(Lincroft, New Jersey) – The top-rated sets of Capped Bust and Liberty Seated half dimes in the PCGS Set Registry have been sold in a multi-million dollar private sale by Legend Numismatics of Lincroft, New Jersey (www.LegendCoin.com). The 93 coins include many of the finest known examples and the unique 1870-S half dime that was individually valued in this transaction at $1.4 million. The coin is graded PCGS MS-64.

[ Editors Note: For an in depth profile on the 1870-S Half Dime, Read Greg Reynold's Article in CoinLink's Coin Guide ]

“The collections are known as ‘The Law Collections,’ named after the anonymous ‘Law Collector,’ a New Jersey hobbyist who sold the coins to us for $2.2 million,” said Laura Sperber, President and Founder of Legend.

“We then sold both sets intact to a Western states collector who told me he would like to exhibit the 1870-S and other coins from his extensive collection, perhaps at an ANA convention next year.”

“The buyer is especially excited about the mint state Liberty Seated half dimes because they will compliment his collection of proof half dimes,” Sperber explained.

The Law Collections of half dimes comprised a total of six different categories that are each ranked number one in the PCGS Set Registry:

* Capped Bust Half Dimes Basic Set, Circ. Strikes, 1829-1837 (with a weighted grade point average of 67.20);
* Capped Bust Half Dimes with Varieties, Circulation Strikes, 1829-1837 (66.091 GPA);
* Liberty Seated Half Dimes Date Set, Circulation Strikes, 1837-1873 (66.06 GPA);
* Liberty Seated Half Dimes Basic Set, Circulation Strikes, 1837-1873 (65.03 GPA);
* Liberty Seated Half Dimes with Varieties, Circulation Strikes, 1837-1873 (65.07 GPA); and
* Liberty Seated Half Dimes with Varieties & 1870-S, Circulation Strikes, 1837-1873 (65.03 GPA).

This is the only complete set of Liberty Seated half dimes possible since it includes the unique 1870-S, the only coin not in the legendary Eliasberg Collection.

Baltimore banker Louis E. Eliasberg Sr. assembled virtually one example of everything struck by the United States before his death in 1976. The 1870 San Francisco Mint half dime was not discovered until 1978 when it was reported to the hobby by Rare Coin Company of America (Rarcoa) in Chicago.

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By Laura Sperber – Legend Numismatics Market Report

WHY ARE THESE PREMIUMS FALLING?

We had suggested this could happen several weeks ago (see our older Market Reports). Our sources of this information are the chief buyers and owners of the biggest legit telemarketers that exist. They have been the ones selling thousands of these coins and bullion to a scared public.

They felt when Saints had to be bid to $2,200.00 in MS65 (non CAC) and $2,350.00 CAC that was too strong. Gold at the time actually was starting to drift down off $1,000.00. The reason why the bids had to jump was because the dealers were still trying to fill back orders tha happened almost lightening fast.

Now, we have gold drifting down towards the $800.00 area and most of those orders are now filled. Sure, its still extremely hard to find any quantities of Saints or Libs at bid (if you are dealer), but you do not have to go out and raise the bids by 10% every other day to find some either. So the premiums are now falling hard and fast.

We were SELLING off the generic MS65 Saints for $1,950.00 and $2,150.00 if CAC’d to the big buyers (one of whom now fully filled all his orders) last week. It is our feeling that if gold holds steady or declines at all, you will see the premiums for these coins drift down even further. It is expected they could hit $1,500.00 for MS65 Saints if gold hits the mid to low $800’s. (more…)