A Five-Cent Coin From 1792 Just Sold for $2.93 Million
Newly discovered Civil War-era gold coin and D.B. Cooper ransom money add to an extraordinary week of rare coin and currency auctions.
A tiny silver coin from the earliest days of the United States has delivered one of the biggest numismatic headlines of 2026.
A 1792 Half Disme graded PCGS MS68 sold for a record $2,928,000 during Heritage Auctions’ October 8–9 GACC U.S. Coins Signature Auction. The remarkable five-cent piece attracted 66 bids before claiming the highest price ever recorded at auction for a half disme.
The result more than doubled the previous $1.41 million auction record, which Heritage established in 2013.
Meanwhile, an unexpected discovery from a Texas bedroom closet rewrote the condition census for a rare San Francisco gold coin. In the accompanying currency auction, a $10,000 Federal Reserve Note and a surviving fragment of the infamous D.B. Cooper ransom money attracted substantial bids.
Together, Heritage’s U.S. coin and currency auctions generated more than $19 million. The U.S. coins event contributed $10,665,743, while the October 6–9 currency event added more than $8.7 million.
The results highlighted a familiar truth about numismatics. Rarity and condition matter, but few things capture collectors’ imaginations quite like an extraordinary piece of American history.
A Five-Cent Coin From the Birth of the U.S. Mint
The 1792 Half Disme, Judd-7, Pollock-7, Rarity-4, carries a story that reaches directly into the administration of President George Washington.
Congress passed the Coinage Act on April 2, 1792. The legislation established the United States Mint and authorized a decimal monetary system. Among its denominations was the half disme, worth five cents.
However, the new Mint had a problem. Its Philadelphia facility was not yet ready to produce coins.
Consequently, the earliest half dismes apparently took shape in the cellar of Philadelphia sawmaker John Harper. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson recorded receiving 1,500 pieces on July 13, 1792. Additional research suggests that the Mint may have struck several hundred more later that year.
Washington acknowledged the effort in his November 6, 1792, address to Congress. He described a “small beginning” in half disme coinage and connected the issue to the nation’s need for small change.
Although collectors traditionally group the half disme with the experimental issues of 1792, PCGS recognizes it as a regular federal coinage issue. The U.S. Mint, meanwhile, identifies the March 1793 delivery of copper cents as its first formal circulation coin delivery.
That distinction does not diminish the half disme’s importance. The little silver coin helped establish the nation’s federal monetary system, and surviving examples show that many entered commerce.
Extraordinary Preservation After 234 Years
The Ronald Firman Collection specimen stands at the top of the PCGS grading census. It remains the only regular-strike 1792 Half Disme to earn the MS68 grade from that service.
Its surfaces display exceptional mint luster and unusually few signs of contact. Natural silver-gray patina provides a foundation for rose, amber, gold, and vivid blue toning.
Furthermore, its preservation exceeds that of the celebrated Starr-Rodriguez specimen, which PCGS grades SP67. The two coins represent different grading categories, but both occupy the highest level of early American numismatics.
The coin’s historical importance made it an obvious centerpiece for Heritage’s GACC sale.
Todd Imhof, Heritage Auctions’ Executive Vice President, emphasized the combination of exceptional condition and national significance. In his view, collectors recognized an opportunity to acquire one of America’s most important early coins.
The MS68 specimen also has a complicated ownership history. Heritage’s latest research raises questions about its traditional attribution to first Mint Director David Rittenhouse.
CoinWeek explored that issue in its October 7, 2026 featured article, The Finest 1792 Half Disme Is Back and Its Rittenhouse Pedigree Is No Longer Certain.
Regardless of the unresolved pedigree, the coin’s $2.93 million result confirms its standing among the great rarities of American numismatics.
Interestingly, the auction also included another 1792 Half Disme. That example, graded PCGS VG10, realized $85,400.
Unlike its nearly pristine counterpart, the VG10 coin carries obvious evidence of circulation. Together, the two pieces offered collectors strikingly different views of America’s earliest federal silver coinage.
A Forgotten Cigar Box Produces a $97,600 Gold Coin
Some extraordinary numismatic discoveries begin with an estate evaluation rather than an auction catalog.
That was the case with an 1867-S Liberty Head Half Eagle graded PCGS MS63, which sold for $97,600.
During an estate evaluation in Buda, Texas, the discovery began with a green milk crate inside a bedroom closet. The crate contained an old cigar box and two shoe boxes.
Inside the cigar box, among other 19th-century coins, rested an extraordinary 1867-S five-dollar gold piece.
According to the heirs, the coins came from relatives in Columbus, Ohio. Family history connects the collection to their great-grandfather, a Union soldier who served during the Civil War.
The family apparently passed the coins from one generation to the next without recognizing the significance of the half eagle.
That oversight may have helped preserve one of the finest examples of the date.
Heritage identifies the newly discovered coin as the finest known 1867-S Half Eagle. Its MS63 grade exceeds the next-highest-graded specimen by two full points.
Only one other example reportedly survives in Mint State, while specialists estimate fewer than 100 examples in all grades.
The discovery therefore changed the recognized condition census for the date.
Collectors responded accordingly. The $97,600 realization more than quadrupled the previous auction record of $22,800. Heritage had matched that earlier record twice, most recently in 2021.
Few auction results illustrate the continuing possibility of major discoveries in family holdings more dramatically.
An 1898 Proof Double Eagle Brings $238,577
Another major result came from an 1898 Liberty Head Double Eagle, JD-1, Rarity-5, graded PCGS PR65 Deep Cameo.
The coin realized $238,577.
The Philadelphia Mint struck only 75 proof double eagles in 1898. Numismatic researcher John Dannreuther estimates that 35 to 50 examples survive across all grades.
Moreover, institutional holdings further reduce the number available to collectors. The Smithsonian Institution’s National Numismatic Collection holds two examples, while the American Numismatic Society owns another.
The auction specimen displays deeply reflective fields and richly frosted design elements. This contrast produces the dramatic Deep Cameo appearance that specialists prize.
Its lemon-yellow gold surfaces also reveal the subtle orange-peel texture that collectors associate with exceptional 19th-century proof coinage.
The coin previously appeared in Heritage’s 2019 offering of the Steinbrenner Collection. Its return gave advanced collectors another opportunity to acquire an important proof gold rarity.
Saint-Gaudens’ High Relief Masterpiece Reaches $97,600
A 1907 Saint-Gaudens High Relief Double Eagle, Flat Rim, graded PCGS MS66, matched the 1867-S half eagle’s $97,600 result.
Few American coins combine artistic ambition and manufacturing difficulty as effectively as the original Saint-Gaudens double eagle.
President Theodore Roosevelt wanted American coinage to reflect the artistic achievements of the ancient Greeks. He therefore enlisted sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens to redesign the nation’s gold coins.
The sculptor created a design that transformed Liberty into a commanding figure striding forward with a torch and olive branch.
However, the extraordinary relief created serious production problems.
The Mint initially needed three impressions from a medal press to bring up the High Relief design. Workers also had to anneal the gold between strikes. Consequently, producing a single coin could require approximately 12 minutes.
Later adjustments to the collar reduced the raised metal fin along the rim, producing the variety collectors call the Flat Rim.
The manufacturing process still proved too slow for routine coinage. As a result, the Mint eventually lowered the relief to permit larger production runs.
The example in Heritage’s auction combined a full strike with outstanding satin luster and attractive antique-gold surfaces.
Collectors have long recognized the 1907 High Relief double eagle as one of America’s greatest coin designs. The issue also appears in the influential book 100 Greatest U.S. Coins.
Three Governments, One Gold Coin: The 1861-O Double Eagle
Civil War history provided another compelling chapter in the auction.
An 1861-O Liberty Double Eagle, PCGS AU53 with CAC approval, from the Christensen Family Collection realized $91,500.
This New Orleans gold coin carries one of the most unusual production histories in American numismatics.
During 1861, three different governments controlled the New Orleans Mint. The facility began the year under federal authority. Louisiana then took control following secession. Finally, the Confederate States assumed responsibility for the Mint.
The facility struck 17,741 double eagles during this turbulent period.
Researchers traditionally divide the production as follows: 5,000 under United States authority, 9,750 under the State of Louisiana, and 2,991 under Confederate authority.
Yet the entire issue used a single pair of dies.
Consequently, assigning an individual 1861-O double eagle to a specific government remains difficult. Specialists continue to study die states, cracks, and other characteristics in an effort to distinguish the different striking periods.
The Christensen Family specimen offered collectors an opportunity to acquire a gold coin associated with three governments during one of the most consequential years in American history.
California Gold Rush History in a Massive $50 Coin
The Christensen Family Collection also supplied an impressive reminder of California’s Gold Rush economy.
An 1851 Augustus Humbert $50 gold piece, Kagin-6, graded NGC AU58, brought $76,250.
The massive octagonal coin dates to a period when California desperately needed reliable circulating money. Gold existed in abundance, but conventional coinage remained scarce.
Augustus Humbert arrived in San Francisco in January 1851 after receiving his appointment as United States Assayer of Gold.
Soon afterward, the assay office began producing substantial gold pieces, including the distinctive octagonal $50 denomination.
The auction example represents the Kagin-6 variety. It features a reeded edge, .887 gold fineness, and the distinctive engine-turned reverse that engraver Albrecht Kuner created. Unlike some related varieties, the reverse lacks a central numeral 50.
The intricate geometric pattern remains one of the most recognizable features of Gold Rush coinage.
Numismatic researcher Donald Kagin estimates that approximately 75 examples of the K-6 variety survive. Only about 10 reportedly qualify as Mint State.
The Heritage specimen offered a tangible connection to the era when private and federally authorized assay operations helped turn California gold into a practical medium of exchange.
Just 1,000 Philadelphia Double Eagles in 1886
Another scarce Liberty Head double eagle reached the same $76,250 price.
The 1886 Liberty Double Eagle, graded NGC AU53, represents one of the lowest-mintage business-strike issues in the series.
The Philadelphia Mint struck only 1,000 circulation examples that year. Furthermore, no other U.S. Mint facility produced double eagles in 1886.
PCGS CoinFacts estimates that approximately 40 to 60 business-strike examples survive.
As a result, collectors seeking a complete date-and-mintmark set of Liberty Head double eagles face a considerable challenge when they reach 1886.
Its scarcity, rather than a dramatic design variation, makes the date a major prize for specialists.
Heritage’s Currency Auction: A $10,000 Note Leads the Way
The accompanying GACC U.S. Currency Signature Auction delivered another extensive selection of American monetary history.
Nearly 2,300 lots covered rare National Bank Notes, fractional currency, gold certificates, error notes, and important named collections.
The leading result came from a Series 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Note, Friedberg 2231-B, graded PMG Choice Uncirculated 63.
The note realized $244,000.
The $10,000 Federal Reserve Note represents the highest denomination of American paper money ever available for public circulation.
Unlike ordinary pocket money, these enormous notes primarily served large banking transactions. Their survival today offers collectors a rare glimpse into the financial system of an earlier era.
The auction example comes from the famous Binion Hoard, a group of 100 Series 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Notes.
Bearing serial number B00003065A, the New York district note displays bright paper, strong ink colors, and impressive embossing. The embossing appears especially prominent on the back, where both serial numbers remain visible.
Although the note has minor repairs, its overall preservation earned a Choice Uncirculated 63 grade from PMG.
Raiden Honaker, Heritage’s Director of U.S. Currency, noted the strong interest that major denominations generate among advanced collectors. However, he also emphasized the auction’s remarkable range of historical material.
That breadth extended well beyond the high-denomination Federal Reserve Notes.
A Newly Reported $5,000 Note Brings $146,400
Another exceptional piece of large-denomination currency came from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
A 1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note, Fr. 2221-H, graded PMG Very Fine 30, sold for $146,400.
Its serial number, H00000397A, identifies an example that had not previously appeared in recorded public auction results.
Furthermore, Heritage reports that the note represents a new addition to the census. Its discovery raises the recorded population of the Friedberg variety to nine examples.
According to the Track & Price census cited by Heritage, collectors have documented only 136 $5,000 Federal Reserve Notes across the Series 1928 and 1934 issues.
The latest discovery therefore added another important survivor to a remarkably small population.
D.B. Cooper Ransom Money Sells for $134,200
Perhaps the currency auction’s most unusual offering came from one of America’s greatest unsolved criminal mysteries.
A fragment of a 1969 Series $20 Federal Reserve Note linked to the 1971 D.B. Cooper hijacking realized $134,200.
On November 24, 1971, a man who became known as D.B. Cooper hijacked a Northwest Orient Airlines passenger flight.
He demanded $200,000 in ransom money and four parachutes. After receiving the payment, Cooper jumped from the aircraft somewhere over the Pacific Northwest.
Neither Cooper nor most of the ransom money ever resurfaced.
Then, on February 10, 1980, eight-year-old Brian Ingram made an extraordinary discovery along the Columbia River in Washington State.
While playing near the riverbank, Ingram uncovered three deteriorating bundles of $20 bills.
The FBI subsequently confirmed that the recovered $5,800 matched serial numbers from the original ransom payment.
The Heritage specimen carried serial number L32796069A and the Friedberg designation 2067-L.
Despite decades of damage, the fragment retained an unusually large portion of its original design. It measured approximately 4.5 inches wide by 1.5 inches high.
The surviving paper included both serial numbers, Andrew Jackson’s portrait, the Treasury Seal, and the Federal Reserve District Seal.
Heritage also offered an early PCGS identification tag linking the serial numbers to the FBI’s records.
A copy of Richard T. Tosaw’s 1984 book, D.B. Cooper Dead or Alive? The True Story of the Legendary Skyjacker, accompanied the fragment.
The result demonstrated how dramatically documented historical connections can influence the market for otherwise ordinary currency.
After all, this was once a common $20 bill. Its place in an unresolved national mystery transformed it into an extraordinary historical artifact.
An 1825 Texas Note Recalls the Empresario Era
The currency auction also reached back to the years before Texas independence.
A handwritten October 15, 1825, $20 note from DeWitt’s Colony in Gonzales, Texas, realized $79,300.
PMG graded the note Very Fine 30 Net.
The issue dates to the period when Mexico encouraged American settlement in Texas through its empresario system.
In April 1825, Green DeWitt received a six-year contract to settle 400 families in territory between the Guadalupe, San Marcos, and Lavaca rivers.
DeWitt’s efforts helped establish one of the early Anglo-American settlements in Mexican Texas.
The auction note bears serial number 2. Heritage identifies it as the only example of its type currently known to the firm.
Its importance extends beyond the history of currency. The note offers a surviving paper record of the people, commerce, and settlement efforts that shaped early Texas.
Rare National Bank Notes Command Strong Prices
Collectors of National Bank Notes also encountered several important opportunities.
A Portland, Oregon, $50 Series 1902 Red Seal note from The First National Bank, graded PMG Very Fine 25, sold for $51,240.
Only four Oregon banks issued $50 Red Seal notes. Together, they produced just 3,900 examples.
Today, researchers report only three survivors.
One resides at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Another, from the Merchants National Bank of Portland, has never appeared in a public sale.
Consequently, the Heritage example represented a particularly rare opportunity to acquire this denomination and type from the Pacific Northwest.
The note also made its first public auction appearance.
Another significant National Bank Note came from Pensacola, Florida.
A $5 Series 1875 First Charter note from The First National Bank of Pensacola, graded PMG Choice Extremely Fine 45, realized $48,800.
Heritage identifies it as the finest of just four surviving First Charter National Bank Notes reported for Florida. All four trace to the same Pensacola institution.
The note displays strong color, broad margins, crisp paper, and bold signatures. Its exceptional condition adds considerably to its appeal.
A Serial Number 1 San Diego Rarity
California collectors also had a rare opportunity.
A Serial Number 1 San Diego $20 Series 1882 Brown Back from The Consolidated National Bank, graded PMG Extremely Fine 40, brought $46,360.
The bank operated from 1883 until 1893.
Heritage reports that this note represents the only known survivor from the institution. Furthermore, it ranks among just three reported California $20 Brown Backs bearing serial number 1.
Its provenance includes the famous collector Albert Grinnell, whose collection reached the auction market in 1945.
The note retains strong pen signatures and vibrant ink colors, enhancing an already significant combination of rarity and historical importance.
William S. George Fractional Currency Collection Adds Another Highlight
The William S. George Collection formed another major attraction of the currency auction.
The expansive 479-lot offering included fractional currency, specimens, experimental issues, and courtesy autographs.
Among its leading pieces was a Fr. 1373a Third Issue 50-cent Justice uncut pair, which realized $48,800.
PMG graded the pair Choice About Uncirculated 58 EPQ.
Only two uncut pairs of this Friedberg number reportedly survive. Researchers also recognize just five additional individual notes.
The offered pair carries an exceptional collecting pedigree.
Originally part of an uncut block of eight, it later entered the Monroe J. Friedman Collection. S.H. and H. Chapman auctioned that collection in Philadelphia in 1903.
Subsequently, the pair passed through the important collections of F.C.C. Boyd and John J. Ford, Jr.
Its PMG 58 EPQ grade makes it the highest-graded Fr. 1373a single note or pair certified by the service.
For specialists in fractional currency, the combination of rarity, provenance, and preservation made this one of the auction’s most important offerings.
Historic Silver and Gold Certificates Round Out the Sale
Two additional federal currency rarities each realized $43,920.
The first was a Fr. 284 Series 1878 $10 Silver Certificate, graded PMG Fine 12.
Only four serial numbers of this Friedberg variety appear in the Track & Price census cited by Heritage.
Moreover, the note has a remarkable ownership history. Its provenance includes Albert A. Grinnell, F.C.C. Boyd, and Amon G. Carter, Jr.
A handwritten countersignature by J.C. Hopper, acting for the Assistant Treasurer of the United States, adds another distinctive historical feature.
Despite its circulated grade, the note attracted considerable attention because of its rarity and celebrated provenance.
The second $43,920 result came from a Fr. 2407 Series 1928 $500 Gold Certificate, graded PCGS Banknote Choice Uncirculated 63.
Its white paper, bold printing, nearly ideal centering, and surviving Treasury Seal embossing distinguish the note.
Furthermore, the holder carries no qualifying comments about problems.
High-denomination small-size Gold Certificates already present substantial challenges for collectors. An example with this degree of preservation offers an especially desirable combination of condition and historical significance.
An Auction That Spanned America’s Monetary History
The October GACC sales brought together material from remarkably different chapters of American history.
The 1792 Half Disme recalled the moment when the new federal government began putting its monetary system into practice. The newly discovered 1867-S Half Eagle showed that important rarities can still emerge from forgotten family holdings.
Meanwhile, the 1861-O Double Eagle recalled the divided loyalties of the Civil War. The Humbert $50 piece represented California’s Gold Rush economy, while the high-denomination Federal Reserve Notes reflected the banking practices of the 20th century.
Even a damaged $20 bill became an extraordinary collectible through its connection to the unresolved D.B. Cooper hijacking.
Ultimately, the $2,928,000 half disme supplied the headline. Yet the breadth of the auctions demonstrated something equally important: American coins and currency preserve far more than monetary value.
They also preserve the people, events, and unexpected discoveries that continue to shape the nation’s history.
Collectors can review the complete results through Heritage Auctions:
