DALLAS, TX: A collector has purchased the all-time finest Redbook set of mint state Bust Half Dollars registered with NGC, for $1,815,000 in a private treaty sale announced by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, Texas (www.HA.com). Many of the coins were originally purchased directly from the Eliasberg collection at public auction.

The anonymous collector who purchased the 60 coins was represented by Heritage. Barry Stuppler of Woodland Hills, California represented the seller, Phil Kaufman, who has also sold several other collections through Heritage's auctions.

According to Heritage Co-Chairman Jim Halperin, who handled the transaction for the firm, "Phil bought most of the nicest coins in the Eliasberg auction in 1997, then spent the next nine years upgrading as many of the coins as he could. And Phil has a great eye! So the coins are just beautiful."

A new world’s record for the largest numismatic auction ever held has been set by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas. Total prices realized for their auctions of rare U.S. Coins and Currency currently stands at $75,439,127. These were the official auctions of the Florida United Numismatists convention, held in Orlando, Florida. The previous world’s record of $61.7 million was set by Heritage at the 2005 FUN convention.

According to Heritage CEO Steve Ivy, “At this time, our proceeds for U.S. Coins total $65,180,395, and U.S. Currency realized $10,258,732, but we expect the total to rise substantially; we expect record setting Post-Auction Buys, and the OnLine Session closing on Tuesday, January 9 should push the total more than a million dollars higher. The world record will continue to rise for the next seven days. It is significant to note that the rare coin total alone exceeded the combined record that Heritage set in 2005.”

According to Heritage President Greg Rohan: "As Heritage's F.U.N. Signature and Platinum Night catalogs continued to grow during production, we knew that this sale would be inspiring - but the consignments that arrived during the last two weeks before the deadline convinced us that this would be a monumental auction.

The Florida United Numismatists convention and surrounding auctions have given the market a "kick start," as usual in a big way. Considered as a whole, the FUN convention and auctions are always a major bellwether event that sets the tone for the early part of the new year's coin market. At the 2007 convention, setup day at the coin show was bustling with activity. However, the auctions began on a mixed note.

During conversations with numerous dealers in attendance and activity at the three auctions that kicked off the year – by Stack's, Superior and Heritage – the following observations were made. Attendance at these auctions was good, but the salesrooms were not packed, as we've frequently seen during the past couple of years or more. However, these days, physical attendance is not a good indication of participation; many now bid online.

C an the coins jingling in your pocket trace your movements? The Defense Department is warning its American contractor employees about a new espionage threat seemingly straight from Hollywood: It discovered Canadian coins with tiny radio frequency transmitters hidden inside. In a U.S. government report, it said the mysterious coins were found planted on U.S. contractors with classified security clearances on at least three separate occasions between October 2005 and January 2006 as the contractors traveled through Canada.

The U.S. report doesn't suggest who might be tracking American defense contractors or why. It also doesn't describe how the Pentagon discovered the ruse, how the transmitters might function or even which Canadian currency contained them. Further details were secret, according to the U.S. Defense Security Service, which issued the warning to the Pentagon's classified contractors. The government insists the incidents happened, and the risk was genuine.

Gold and silver futures gave up early gains to finish near steady Thursday, backing down when oil sagged and the dollar recovered after the metals were initially underpinned by a weaker U.S. currency, analysts said. At the moment, gold and silver appear to be caught in trading ranges not far above the psychological $600 and $12 areas, respectively, during a tug-of-war between the bulls and the bears.

February gold rose 50 cents to settle at $613.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. As it was closing, February gold at the Chicago Board of Trade was up 30 cents to $614. Comex March silver closed up 1.5 cents to $12.46 an ounce. As it was closing, CBOT March silver was down 1.5 cents to $12.434. "There were several things going on," said Dan Vaught, futures analyst with A.G. Edwards. "There was some talk that President Bush's speech last night, in which he kind of warned Iran and Syria to quit interfering in Iraq, may have brought in some safe-haven buying, although that was probably not a really big factor."

The bad pennies won't be at the Texas Coin Show in Grapevine this weekend. They may be in the parking lot, though. Experts say security's tight and robberies are rare inside big coin shows like the one starting at the Grapevine Convention Center today, but outside is a different story. Dealers and collectors carrying high-dollar coins in parking lots, hotel lobbies and along highways can be easy marks for organized coin thieves, and the losses aren't small change.

A band of hooded, masked robbers nabbed $4 million in rare coins at knifepoint from a man unloading his car in a hotel parking lot last weekend in Florida. The man was taking part in the Florida United Numismatists' annual coin show at the area's convention center and had the expensive copper, silver and gold coins in a Samsonite suitcase."The problem isn't at the shows. It's the coming to the shows and the leaving the shows," said Doug Davis, an expert in numismatic crimes who consults with police agencies and the FBI.

First State Depository

NGC- Jan 12, 2007

Enables Financed Positions to Remain Collateralized During and Following NGC Certification NGC announces a cooperation agreement with First State Depository Company, LLC (First State), a private, professionally managed certified coin and precious metals custody company based in Wilmington, Delaware. First State specializes in providing secure, insured and confidential safekeeping and account reporting services to both dealers and individuals active in the certified coin market. This new alliance is designed to directly support and greatly enhance the financing, storage, and delivery requirements associated with the grading of coins submitted to NGC by dealers throughout the marketplace.

Die Varieties

PCGS- Jan 12, 2007

Variety has been called the spice of life and collecting by variety is definitely the wave of the future in the rare coin market. In the 19th century, most people collected by date only and paid very little attention to mint marks. In the 20th century, collecting by date and mint mark became popular, along with collecting obvious varieties. Previously, collecting by die variety has been the realm of a few dedicated specialists but, recently, there has been a significant growth in the number of die variety collectors, a product of the explosion of information and the fascinating appeal of coin varieties.

Alexander Hamilton

American Heritage- Jan 11, 2007

Today is Alexander Hamilton’s 250th birthday. Unless, of course, it’s his 252nd. He claimed to have been born in 1757, but there is considerable nearly contemporary evidence that he was actually born in 1755. But there is no argument that he was not yet 50 when he died at the hands of Aaron Burr in 1804. And there is no argument that despite his brief life he had more influence on the future of the United States than all but a very, very few of the Founding Fathers.

Cocaine Notes

999 Today - Jan 11, 2007

Traces of cocaine can be found on 100 per cent of euro banknotes circulating in the Republic of Ireland, research has suggested. Scientists at Dublin's City University (DCU) used sophisticated forensic techniques to analyse cocaine contamination on a sample of 45 banknotes currently in circulation in the greater Dublin area.

Trumpet - By Robert Morley - Jan. 12, 2007

History is littered with the wrecks of paper money adventures. In hundreds of cases, in all lands, at all times, the story has been the same: loss of confidence in and eroding value of fiat currencies. Paper money does not work; the temptation of the printing press is too great. Emperors, kings, presidents, prime ministers and central bankers have not been able to resist the temptation:

Canadian Coin News- Jan. 12, 2007

Officials in Ottawa are bracing for "dangerous levels" of forged banknotes hitting the streets over the next three years, the Canadian Press news service predicts. Its news report with the doom-and-gloom predictions was based on internal Bank of Canada documents its staff obtained using the Access to Information Act. Ironically, the article appeared in newspapers across the country five days after the federal currency-issuing and regulating agency released the most recent updated banknote in the current Canadian Journey series.

ANS - Jan.11, 2007

The American Numismatic Society will hold its 2007 Annual Dinner Gala at the Waldorf-Astoria in NYC this evening and will honor Chester L. Krause, a pioneer numimsmatic publisher and lifelong fixture in the numismatic community.