by Greg Reynolds for CoinLink

On May 26 and 27, Superior Galleries of Beverly Hills will auction a variety of numismatic items, mostly U.S. coins, plus some patterns, many British and other European coins, tokens and medals, and paper money. The topic here is the ‘Roadrunner’ collection of 133 items, the vast majority of which are U.S. coins.

A significant percentage of the Roadrunner collection consists of coins from the shipwreck of the S.S. Republic, including a startling sixteen Liberty Seated Half Dollars. An extensive run of Liberty Head Double Eagles ($20 coins) is newsworthy. The collector known as ‘Roadrunner’ has gold coins of all denominations dating from the middle of the 19th century. Most of his gold coins were produced at Branch Mints, though he has several Philadelphia Mint gold coins.

The most valuable coin in the Roadrunner collection is an 1879 Flowing Hair Stella ($4 gold coin). It is NGC certified ‘Proof-67 Cameo.’ He purchased it privately from Superior Galleries.

Overall, this collection is particularly strong in the series of Liberty Head Eagles ($10 gold coins). Eagles dated 1860-S are extremely rare, and Roadrunner has one of the highest graded ones, an NGC certified MS-61 1860-S from the S.S. Republic. It is one of only two that the NGC has graded above MS-60; the other, which is graded MS-61 is also from the S.S. Republic. The PCGS has not graded any of these above AU-55. It seems likely that fewer than fifty 1860-S Eagles are known.

The 1858-S Eagle is very rare. There are certainly less than 135 pieces known. Roadrunner’s 1858-S, NGC graded AU-55, may be one of the best. Jeff Garrett & Ron Guth write that the 1858-S “is nearly as rare as the more highly regarded 1858 Eagle, but unlike the 1858, no Mint State examples of the 1858-S are known” (Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins, 2006, p. 337).

My guess is that there are less than two hundred and fifty 1860-O Eagles in existence. The NGC census lists only two as being from the S.S. Republic and Roadrunner has the higher graded of these two. It is certified MS-60.

There are too many rare Eagles in the Roadrunner collection to list here. It will be interesting, though, to find out how the Roadrunner “1846/5-O” fares at the auction. According to the late Walter Breen, in his 1988 encyclopedia, there are two varieties of 1846/5-O overdates and one 1846/6 “Repunched Date” variety that is sometimes “confused” with the overdates. It is not always clear which is which, and the respective rarity of each of these three varieties (if there really are three and just three) has not been thoroughly documented. As of May 2008, both the PCGS and NGC reports are not useful in determining the number of 1846/5-O Eagles extant.

The cataloguer remarks that, on the Roadrunner “1846/5-O,” the “overdate is sharp and the ball of the 5 is clear within the loop of the 6 and the upper portion of the 6 has evidence as well of the undertype.” It sounds like it is one of the first of the two varieties of 1846/5-O overdates that Breen detailed. The Roadrunner “1846/5-O” is NGC graded AU-58, and is from the S.S. Republic. It certainly could be one of the highest quality examples of this variety. Plus, it is an overdate that is typically collected as a separate ‘date.’

Roadrunner is enthralled by coins from shipwrecks, and he likes coins with eye appeal. Mike Bonham, Senior Vice President of Superior Galleries, handled the consignment. Bonham said that Roadrunner “decided to sell now because he is running several businesses and he just does not have the time he would like to devote to his coin collection.” Roadrunner is selling all of his pre-1935 coins and paper money.

Roadrunner has a variety of silver and gold coins, mostly from the middle and late 19th century. He has Type 1, an 1851-D, and Type 3 Gold Dollars, but not a Type 2 Gold Dollar. His Type 3 dollar is an 1881 that is graded “MS-69″ by the Numismatic Guaranty Corp. (NGC). The Roadrunner 1851-D is NGC graded MS-62, and it is one of four Dahlonega (Georgia) Mint gold coins in the Roadrunner collection.

Roadrunner has only two Quarter Eagles. One represents the Dahlonega Mint, an 1847-D that is graded AU-58 by the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS). The other is a high quality, type coin, a 1905 that is NGC graded MS-67. Roadrunner’s one Three Dollar Gold piece is a rare date, an 1858. It is NGC graded AU-55.

Two of his four Liberty Head Half Eagles ($5 gold coins) are from the Dahlonega Mint, and both are NGC certified, an 1842-D that is graded AU-55 and an 1853-D, AU-58. An 1848-Charlotte Half Eagle is also NGC graded AU-58. The only ‘With Motto’ five is an 1891-Carson City (NV) Mint issue, which is NGC graded MS-62.

The Roadrunner collection is weak in silver coins. An 1890 dime, NGC certified ‘Proof-68 Ultra Cameo,’ must feel alone, as there are no other dimes, no half dimes, and no quarters in the collection. An 1871 pattern quarter of the Indian Princess Seated design is possibly an extremely distant relative. This particular piece is even farther removed from a Liberty Seated dime than might otherwise be imagined, though, as it is struck in copper. It is a die trial and a pattern, narrowly defined. It is PCGS certified Proof-65 with a full red designation. Roadrunner has one other pattern. It is an 1866 Shield Nickel, Judd #504, though he has no regular issue, scarce nickels.

Roadrunner’s 1836 Gobrecht silver dollar is a regular issue, not a pattern, though all 1836 Gobrechts are often listed as patterns. Roadrunner’s Gobrecht is NGC certified Proof-63.

Roadrunner’s short run of Morgan Dollars features several superb quality pieces. Interestingly, Roadrunner’s three Peace dollars are all NGC graded MS-67, a 1922, a 1923 and a 1926-D. These are condition rarities as it is hard to find Peace Dollars that have been certified as MS-67. Roadrunner is very attracted to very high quality silver dollars.

Much of the Roadrunner collection comes from the S.S. Republic, which sunk off the coast of Georgia in Nov. 1865. The S.S. Republic was privately owned at the time and running under contract with a large steamship line. Odyssey Marine Exploration found the wreck in the summer of 2003, and most of the coins discovered were certified and encapsulated by the NGC with special labels that explicitly mention the S.S. Republic. Many of Roadrunner’s coins are in such holders with such labels.

Silver coins are much more susceptible to corrosion in salt water than gold coins. All or nearly all the silver coins in the wreck were too severely affected to qualify for numerical grades.

As mentioned above, Roadrunner has sixteen Liberty Seated Half Dollars from the shipwreck of the S.S. Republic. All are in NGC holders with labels that indicate the date of the coin and the name of the shipwreck, but do not state any kind of grade. The following dates are included: 1855-S. 1856-S, 1857-S, 1858-O, 1858-S, 1859-S, 1860-S, 1861-S, 1862-S, 1863-S, 1864-S, 1865, and 1865-S, plus three 1861-O halves. The range of dates is neat. Many of the coins had clearly circulated before being brought on the ship. While these are historically curious, it is not clear that advanced collectors of Liberty Seated halves will bid on them. Superior’s modest auction price estimates suggest that these could be affordable souvenirs for budget-minded collectors of coins and other historical items.

Roadrunner acquired seven 1865 Double Eagles ($20 gold coins), all are from the S.S. Republic. Before the discovery of a handful of shipwrecks in recent decades, Type 1 Double Eagles, which were minted from 1850 to 1865, were especially rare in grades of MS-60 and higher. Now, there are many thousands of them for the whole first type. Demand, though, has increased dramatically, because a larger number of serious numismatists are collecting Double Eagles ‘by date’ and because the historical allure of shipwrecks has brought many history-minded collectors into the coin collecting community. Hundreds of people, for sure, only collect coins that were found in shipwrecks.

Roadrunner’s seven 1865 Double Eagles, all with special S.S. Republic labels, are NGC certified MS-65, MS-64, MS-63*, MS-63, MS-62, MS-62 and MS-61, respectively. The specific labels pertaining to five of the seven include the designation “Date in Rim,” which refers to a particular die variety.

Roadrunner has other Double Eagles from the S.S. Republic and he has Double Eagles from the shipwrecks of the S.S. Central America and the S.S. Brother Jonathan. An 1860-S from the Brother Jonathan is lot #163. He has two 1857-S Double Eagles from the Central America and one from the Republic.

An 1857-S Double Eagle, PCGS certified MS-63 Prooflike, has an original gold foil label in its PCGS holder. These labels were used when coins from the S.S. Central America were first submitted to PCGS with extensive documentation and much fanfare. Coins in PCGS holders with such gold foil labels have become scarcer over time as the PCGS or the NGC continue to, at times, award grades higher than the original PCGS grades to many of the coins from the S.S. Central America.

Recent reports, of U.S. coins found in the shipwreck of the S.S. New York, will contribute to demand for coins from shipwrecks. The S.S. New York sank off the Louisiana coast in 1846, and thus the coins found are likely to have dates up to and including 1846. The additional supply of shipwreck coins will not affect the rarity of the shipwreck coins in the Roadrunner collection which seem to date from 1856 to 1865.

The ‘Roadrunner’ collector also contains a small, though notable, PCGS graded paper money group of ten U.S. items and one Confederate $500 bill dated 1864. The most famous note of the ten is a Binion pedigreed U.S. $10,000 bill of the 1934 series. It is PCGS graded “Gem Uncirculated 65.”

Roadrunner has another $10,000 note, a “1900″ series Gold Certificate which is PCGS graded Very Choice Crisp Unc. -64. Its official cancellation is not terribly distracting. This issue is known as Friedberg #1225, and all privately held notes of this issue are said to have been cancelled. Even so, I find it to be fascinating. There are probably fewer than six hundred $10,000 1900 series Gold Certificates in existence, and this one is probably in the top 100, in terms of quality. Moreover, in an odd way, it is moderately priced for a $10,000 bill. As these are officially cancelled, market prices for the 1900 series $10,000 notes can be and have stayed below $10,000.

On the whole, the Roadrunner collection has a neat array of coins from shipwrecks, including some very rare dates. Most of his silver coins are not from shipwrecks and are not rare, though these tend to be particularly attractive. Along with rare gold and high-grade silver coins, the presence of patterns and varied paper money, plus a gem Stella, make the Roadrunner collection curious and entertaining.

©2008 Greg Reynolds