Heritage Auctions’ ongoing Showcase series featuring scarce and sought-after Brazilian and Portuguese rarities continues with part IV of A Special Presentation of Brazilian and Portuguese Coins and Bank Notes, which includes fine examples of both coins and paper money. Rarely are we able to offer both facets of numismatics in the same auction, and here each expresses wonderful instances of engraving, adding to the artistic merits of each respective series.
Certain to interest bidders are the impressive array of 960 Reis in advanced states of preservation, including an 1815-B 960 Reis with George III counterstamp in MS63, high-grade early gold issues, and banknotes featuring the colorful and intricate designs of the American Bank Note Company.
An impressive rarity featured in this auction is the 1729/8-R João V gold 6400 Reis. This exceedingly rare issue is the first example we have handled of this date, presented here with evenly handled motifs and antique-gold toning. Elusive in any grade, the specimen offered is only the second we’ve managed to locate outside the Banco Espirito Santo, with none in such collections as Norweb, Eliasberg, or RLM. This coin is from a five-year series, of which all dates are rare. Previous noted auction prices for coins in this series include $50,000 for the sole PCGS-graded 1728/7-R (AU58) in our 2017 ANA auction (Lot 30147), while NGC has a single 1727-R (AU Details) in their registry which brought $125,000 in January 2012. This prize represents a unique for Brazilian type collectors. This coin has been submitted to PCGS for grading and certification.
Other significant offerings in this auction include:
- Brazil: João V gold 20000 Reis 1726-M MS62 NGC, Minas Gerais mint, KM117
- Brazil: Jose I gold 3200 Reis 1766-R AU55 NGC, Rio de Janeiro mint, KM183.2
- Brazil: Maria I 5 Reis 1799-B MS62 Brown NGC, Lisbon mint, KM227, Reduced size
- Brazil: João VI 960 Reis 1820-R AU58 NGC, Rio de Janeiro mint, KM326.1, LMB-478. Struck on a Mexico Ferdinand VII 8 Reales 1818-JJ with British Honduras 6 Shillings 1 Penny block letter “GR” counterstamp
- Brazil: Pedro II copper-nickel Pattern 50 Reis 1871 MS63 NGC, KM-Pn143
- Brazil: Pedro I copper Uniface Obverse Die Trial 80 Reis 1829-SP UNC, São Paulo mint, KM-Unl.
- Brazil: Pedro II gold 10000 Reis 1859 AU53 NGC, Rio de Janeiro mint, KM467
- Portugal: Miguel I gold 7500 Reis (Peça) 1828 MS62 NGC, Lisbon mint, KM388
This auction is open for bidding now at Coins.HA.com, with the closing live session scheduled for Sunday, May 15 at 8 PM CT.
