As a part of the May Long Beach Signature Auction, Heritage is offering the finest known O-118 variety of the 1825 half dollar - a newly discovered example and one of only three R.8 varieties within the entire Capped Bust half series.

The 1825 Overton-118 is identified by a heavy vertical die break between the 25 in the date. Two Bust half experts, Glenn Peterson and Brad Karoleff, believe the break occurred during hardening of the die prior to use. This die break undoubtedly led to early disposal of the obverse die. The reverse die continued in use, paired with a different obverse to strike O-103. The workhorse reverse die earlier struck the 1824 O-116.

Just three examples of O-118 are known. Al Overton, who died in 1972, was unaware of the variety. According to an April 7, 2008 Coin World article, the discovery piece was found at an Oregon coin shop by Olin Carter, circa 1983. Per Capped Bust authority Sheridan Downey, “it is the Overton plate coin, graded Fine for sharpness but with dull, washed out surfaces.”

The second O-118 to surface was sold unattributed within a group lot to Charles Erb, circa 1990. Erb’s example found its way to Charlton “Swampy” Meyer Jr., who owned the most complete die variety collection of Capped Bust halves. According to Downey and Coin World, that example “grades VF with attractive album toning on the obverse. The reverse is lightly wiped.”

The April 7 Coin World article states, “based on the conditions of the other two examples of the variety, the new discovery [of O-118] would be the finest known… Sheridan Downey believes the new discovery … could bring from $75,000 to $100,000.”

The present piece, the third known O-118 1825 half, has been graded VF20 by ANACS and displays deep apple-green and gunmetal-gray toning. The fields are slightly glossy and exhibit a few hair-thin marks, made nearly imperceptible by the toning. A thin, slender mark near the ear is also unobtrusive. Wear is even and moderate, with ample plumage definition present on the eagle.

To the best of Heritage’s knowledge, this is the first major auction appearance for the variety, which was absent from the extensive and formidable die variety collections of Jules Reiver and Russell Logan. The next owner of this coin may hold it for many years, then sell it privately or even donate it to a museum and permanently take it off the market. The opportunity to acquire an O-118 1825 at public auction is here, but fleeting.

By David L. Ganz, Numismatic News

As the 110th Congress sprinted to a Memorial Day recess, a number of numismatic measures were passed by the House of Representatives May 15.

They now go to the Senate. Some deft parliamentary maneuvers and stealth actions are part of the package.

Foremost on the list is H.R. 5614, a bill whose initial appearance and very title gave the impression that the Mint was being asked to enter mainline production and reproduce a Saint-Gaudens ultra-high-relief gold double eagle. (The original bill’s name was worded this way: “This Act shall be known as the ‘Original Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle Ultra-High Relief Bullion Coin Act’).

The name suggests a gold coin that was fabled a generation ago as a production nightmare that took seven bold strikes on the Mint’s coining presses to bring up the design. The real purpose of the bill, however, was the working miners of Montana who produce palladium - the stealth nomenclature opts for that design with the new metal for the Mint to produce.

A gold 27mm pattern replica is the design choice. As the bill’s legislative history notes, “a 34-millimeter version was hand-struck on a standard double eagle planchet using a medal press and, because manufacturing and technical limitations prevented mass production of these pieces, this production resulted in low mintage, with fewer than two dozen specimens of the 34-millimeter version known to be in existence today.”

It goes on to note that “a second, 27-millimeter, version was struck using two stacked $10 eagle planchets,” which is the coin being reproduced in gold for collectors. But the real purpose of the bill is not gold but to produce palladium coinage.

Read the Full Numismaster Article Here

By Amy Wilson - HERALD-LEADER.COM

Worley Charles’ grandfather told the story of when, as a boy, he marked timber somewhere along the Licking River and then rode the logs down the river. Somewhere along upper Devil’s Creek, 12 feet up on the ridge, he saw a hole in the ledge.

He climbed out of the water, cut a pine tree into a ladder and made his way up to look inside.

There, he found a set of hinged money molds in a bundle of leather. He had heard many times the story of Kentucky’s lost silver treasure, and how a man named John Swift had found or hid or smelted thousands in glistening nuggets and coins somewhere in these woods named now for Daniel Boone. But the man who hid the vast cache had gone blind. Blind!

Superstitious, Worley Charles’ grandfather never went back for more.

But his grandchild Worley was not so easily scared. He has been looking for John Swift’s silver since he started reading the copies of the 40 different Swift journals he’s gotten his hands on. He’s been looking for 35 years.

There’s a lot of cinematic hullabaloo this weekend about an intrepid archaeologist named Indiana Jones and a treasure of crystal skulls (which are real things, apparently.) Because movies require it, there’s lots of derring-do and a big finish.

Read Full Article here

(New Iberia, Louisiana) - A recent close examination of coins recovered a year ago from the 1846 Gulf of Mexico shipwreck of the SS New York has revealed some of the finest known Southern branch mint gold coins and a nearly complete set of Bust half dollars.

The New York was a side-wheel steamer that foundered during a hurricane about 60 miles off the coast of Cameron, Louisiana in 1846. Four New Iberia, Louisiana area residents found the 365-ton wooden hull ship in about 60 feet of water two years ago. The four, who call their recovery operation, “Gentlemen of Fortune,” are Gary and Reneè Hebert, Avery Munson and Craig DeRouen.

“We brought up the ship’s bell in the summer of 2006, staked a claim and obtained a federal court judgment granting us title to the site, then brought up several hundred coins from the underwater mud last year. We recently sent them to Numismatic Conservation Services and Numismatic Guaranty Corporation for certification,” said DeRouen.

“This is the most important group of Southern gold coins ever found on a treasure ship. There are some of the finest known Quarter Eagles and Half Eagles struck in Charlotte and Dahlonega, as well as examples of gold coins struck at the New Orleans Mint,” stated prominent numismatic researcher and author Q. David Bowers, co-chairman of Stack’s Rare Coins in New York City and Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.

“The recovered coins are worth more than $1 million,” said dealer John Albanese of Far Hills, New Jersey who recently appraised them.

“They include an 1845-D $2.50 graded NGC MS-64; 1844-D $5 graded NGC MS-63* prooflike; and an 1844-O $5 graded NGC MS-64. There’s also a nearly complete set of Capped Bust halves with over two dozen different dates including an 1815, and quite a few foreign gold coins as well,” said Albanese. (more…)

By Doug Winter - www.raregoldcoins.com

As the year races towards its half way mark, let’s step back and take a quick overview of what’s happened in the rare gold coin market so far in 2008 and what’s on tap in the coming months.

Last year saw an almost unparalleled upwards spike in gold prices and, as a result, we saw levels for many generics that were hard to imagine. I remember wholesaling some very low end AU Saints at over $1,000 each and thinking “Jeez, this is a lot of money for junky Saints.”

Despite huge increases in commodities in 2008, the gold market has been weaker than what we saw in 2007. My guess is that we’ll see gold continue to hold in the $850-950 range but I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw some price increases as the election draws nearer.

The generic gold market is as weak right now as at any time I can recall. There is a lot of supply on the market and very little demand. There are exceptions to this rule, of course. CAC approved common date Saints in MS65 and better are very easy to sell and smaller denomination issues in MS63 and up have pockets of demand. But it appears to me that generics will stay weak for the immediate future.

The market for very rare United States gold coins has never been better. If you follow the top end of the market, you’ve probably noticed a scenario in which there are very few great coins available and lots of demand. Many of the really great six and seven figure rarities don’t trade at auction and are quietly placed by specialized dealers who have multiple collectors anxiously waiting to buy really great one-of-a-kind coins. (more…)