Jan. 3-8 events taking place during Orlando 2012 FUN Convention; Heritage announces Platinum Night across two evenings for the first time; The Dr. and Mrs. Steven L. Duckor Collection, Harvey B. Jacobson, Jr. Collection headline important collections offered
An incredible rarity, a 1921 $20 Double Eagle, MS66 PCGS Secure, Ex: Duckor/Godard – from The Dr. and Mrs. Steven L. Duckor Collection – the finest specimen of the type known, is expected to hold collectors in thrall when it leads Heritage Auctions’ Jan. 4-5 Platinum Night offerings as part of the Florida United Numismatists (FUN) Convention, held Jan. 3-8 at the Orange County Convention Center.
“Dr. and Mrs. Steven L. Duckor include this magnificent piece in their current PCGS Registry Set,” said Greg Rohan, President of Heritage Auctions. “Dr. Duckor is both a connoisseur and an astute student of the Saint-Gaudens series, and he spent more than 33 years building his two sets. Needless to say, only the finest specimens found a home in his collection, and among his finest coins, this is the very top. We expect collectors will be as excited about its appearance at auction as we are.”
Dr. and Mrs. Duckor will be donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this coin to benefit the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution.
Heritage has also announced that, for the first time, it will divide its Platinum Night offerings into two nights, as opposed to the traditional single Thursday night auction. Platinum Night will now begin with the first session on Wednesday night, January 4 and continue with session 2 on Thursday night, January 5.
“We’ve seen our Platinum Night auctions grow in popularity over the years, and with that we’ve seen the auctions getting longer and longer,” said Rohan. “We thought, in order to give tired convention-goers a break from an auctions going until 2 a.m. that we’d divide it into two shorter evening events. We also want to make sure that collectors have plenty of time to plan for two evenings of Platinum Night.”
The magnificent 1829 $5 Large Date PR64 PCGS, CAC, Ex: Garrett, the centerpiece offering of the unmatched Harvey B. Jacobson, Jr. Collection of early Half Eagles, is another principal Platinum Night offering.
“This is the first Large Diameter Capped Bust half eagle certified as a proof by a major grading service,” said Rohan. “Both PCGS and CAC have agreed on this coin’s proof status and a grade of PR64. Any Large Date, Large Diameter 1829 half eagle is an extreme rarity – our catalogers have traced just seven distinct specimens – so this coin’s status as a proof or special striking makes it even more important.”
Only 11 proof Large Diameter half eagles exist in total, including three coins that show a proof surface on only one side. Four of those coins are in the National Numismatic Collection in the Smithsonian Institution, and four more are in the Harry W. Bass, Jr. Core Collection on display at the American Numismatic Association’s (ANA) museum in Colorado. Only three true proofs are believed to be in private hands, and this is the only one whose current whereabouts are known.
The 1829 $5 is by no means the only treasure in the Harvey B. Jacobson, Jr. Collection. A Choice 1828/7 Half Eagle MS64 NGC, the finest of just five or six examples known, Ex: Byron Reed/Suros, and a legendary rarity in the U.S. gold series, is already creating significant buzz within the hobby.
While gold rarities headline the second Platinum Night session, important early copper rarities anchor the first. A 1793 Chain 1C Periods MS65 Brown PCGS CAC – the Cleneay-Atwater-Eliasberg Specimen and the plate coin in Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of Early United States Cents 1793-1814, is a sensational coin that has been drawing the eyes of top collectors with its incredible pedigree and rarity. The famous “Bisecting Crack” 1793 Liberty Cap cent S-14, B-17 Liberty Cap Cent, AU50+ PCGS, one of the top offerings from the superb Denis W. Loring Collection of 1793 Large Cents and tied for second finest known, is being greatly anticipated as it prepares for auction.
Another top offering from the Platinum Night groupings comes in the form of a 1799 Silver Dollar, 7×6 Stars, MS66 PCGS, one of the finest Bust dollars ever identified, which, with its absolutely impeccable surface preservation, will have aficionados of high grade early American numismatics carefully considering their bids.
“It seems superfluous to point out that this fleeting opportunity is one that alert series specialists must seize quickly,” said Rohan. “The only other MS66 PCGS 1799 dollar that we know of is the one from the Joseph C. Thomas Collection we offered in our FUN Signature auction in January 2011, and it brought almost $300,000.”
Collectors of Morgan Dollars are going to be hotly anticipating the appearance of the 1895 Morgan Dollar PR66 Deep Cameo PCGS, “King of the Morgan Dollars,” Ex: Jackson Hole, whose exquisite preservation and contrast practically ensures that it will become the cornerstone of another great set. Furthermore, 100% of the proceeds of the sale of this coin will be given to benefit the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution.
Further highlights include, but certainly are not limited to:
1792 P1C One Cent, Judd-2, Pollock-2: Fewer than 10 examples of this important pattern are known. This experimental coin possesses extraordinary historical significance, extreme rarity, and unparalleled collector interest.
1776 $1 Continental Dollar, CURRENCY, Pewter, EG FECIT MS67 NGC: The best-preserved of its kind and the finest known Continental Dollar of all. Virtually perfect for a coin that is more than 200 years old.
1927 Specimen Striking Buffalo Nickel, SP65 NGC CAC: This highlight from The Teton Ranch Collection is one of the most enigmatic 20th century experimental pieces and is one of only six examples known.
1907 $10 Wire Rim Indian Head Ten Dollar, Judd-1902, formerly Judd-1774A, Pollock-1996, PR62 NGC: Likely the only coined example of his own work that Augustus Saint-Gaudens ever saw. It is believed that this specimen is the sole surviving representative of the plain edge 1907 Indian eagle pattern, although there is an outside chance that a second example may still exist.
1861-S $20 Paquet AU58 NGC. Ex: S.S. Republic: From The Galt’s Gulch Collection. This is a remarkable and historic coin in two ways: as one of the finest known 1861-S double eagles with the short-lived Paquet Reverse, and as an amazing recovery from the S.S. Republic shipwreck. This piece is one of nine AU58 Paquets certified at NGC, and the only 1861-S Paquet in any grade attributed to SS Republic.
87.17-Ounce Kellogg and Humbert Gold Ingot recovered from SS Central America: Made between 1854 and 1857, the year the Central America was lost in an Atlantic shipwreck, this massive gold ingot gives insight into the financial system that sprang up around the California Gold Rush.
Heritage Auctions, headed by Steve Ivy, Jim Halperin and Greg Rohan, is the world’s third largest auction house, with annual sales more than $750 million, and 600,000+ online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and gain access to a complete record of prices realized, along with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com.
