Fresh-to-the market coins that had been stored in a Boston garage for decades brought the results of Heritage’s The Boston Collection US Coins Showcase Auction to $987,789 USD on September 11, 2023. Some of the items in the collection were mailed and postmarked as far back as 1942 but remained unopened to this day, including letters from the United States Mint.
“The collection was put together in the 1940s, ’50s, and ’60s by the grandfathers of the consignors, who discovered it in a garage,” says Sam Foose, Senior Consignment Director at Heritage Auctions. “Much of the material in this collection has never been offered at auction before, and the aggressive bidding underscored the significance of this collection.”
Among the highlights of the Showcase Auction were boxes of Proof sets. A box of 25 unopened mint-sealed Proof sets led all lots when it soared to $60,000. A 1952 box of 50 unopened mint-sealed sets brought $28,800, while another 1951 box of 25 sets drew a winning bid of $27,600. A box of 100 1955 Proof sets sold for $16,200.
“These Proof sets had been stashed away in the garage for decades,” Foose said. “Unopened, mint-sealed sets always are in high demand because the coins in the sets often are so well-protected, and the opportunity they represented was shown in the aggressive bidding that drove their results far beyond pre-auction expectations.”
A 1909 Half Eagle MS66 NGC brought the highest result for an individual coin when it hammered at $26,400.
Other top lots include a 1945 Wells Fargo Original BU Roll of Half Dollars that sold for $12,000; a box of 25 1954 Proof Sets that went for $11,400; and a box of 25 1955 Proof Sets that garnered $10,200.
More information about these and other lots in the Heritage Auctions Showcase sale of The Boston Collection can be found at HA.com/63242.
