Costa Mesa, CA (November 20, 2020) – Built over more than half a century, the E Pluribus Unum Collection is replete with coins and medals of superb rarity and quality, many with pedigrees dating as far back as the 19th century. Sales from this collection commenced in the Stack’s Bowers Galleries November 2019 Auction with the record-setting $1.5 million sale of New Jersey coppers, an offering that included a remarkable eight coins from the Maris plate.
Building upon this momentum, Part 2 of the E Pluribus Unum Collection was among the most anticipated specialized offerings in the firm’s November 2020 Auction, hosted at the Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach, California. This second selection offered nearly 500 lots focused on 17th and 18th century colonial types, including over 200 Washington pieces. Of special note were nearly 40 Machin’s Mills halfpence by die marriage, more than 60 Connecticut coppers, and dozens of numismatic delicacies featuring multiple strikes, brockages, and high-quality overstrikes. Winning bids for the E Pluribus Unum Collection, Part 2 totaled more than $1.1 million, emphasizing remarkable strength among these more specialized categories.
The top price, $66,000, was earned by the finest known 1786 Scholar’s Head Connecticut copper graded AU-53 by PCGS. An AU-55+ (PCGS) Saint Patrick farthing in silver, the second finest graded by that service, sold for $28,800. The incredibly rare VF-30 (PCGS) Raleigh Plantation Token was last offered in Stack’s Bowers Galleries’ 1988 sale of the Norweb Collection and earned $18,000 in the November 2020 auction.
A fantastic Flipover Double Strike with Brockage error on a 1785 Vermont copper, provenanced to the famous Crosby and Parmelee collections, brought $14,400. The incredible selection of Machin’s Mills halfpence was highlighted by the MS-63 BN (PCGS) 1787 Vlack 17-87A, the sole finest graded for the type by PCGS, that sold for $21,600.
The Washington pieces offered a tour through the most iconic issues of the series including medals, tokens, and colonial-era pieces intended for circulation. A MS-63 (PCGS) Funeral Medal in white metal brought the top price among this category at $12,600, followed up at $10,200 by a rare "Plain Edge" 1795 Liberty and Security penny graded VF-30 (PCGS). A magnificent SP-65 (PCGS) U.S. Mint Cabinet medal in silver earned $9,000 and an historic MS-62 (PCGS) fire-gilt 1805 Eccleston Medal with secret marks brought $7,500. An iconic ca. 1880 Washington Before Boston Medal in silver with a grade of SP-63 (PCGS) sold for $6,000, while a rare SP-62 (PCGS) Letter to Hamilton Medal in white metal was bid to $5,800.
The over $1.1 million in prices realized by Part 2 of the E Pluribus Unum Collection solidifies its status as one of the greatest cabinets of U.S. Colonial and Early American numismatics. Bidders will be delighted with another selection of U.S. Colonial coinage in the Stack’s Bowers Galleries December 2020 Showcase Auction, which is now available for viewing and bidding at www.StacksBowers.com. Collectors can also contact the firm at Consign@StacksBowers.com or 800-566-2580 to consign their collection to a future Showcase Auction and take advantage of industry-leading expertise and bidding platforms.
About Stack’s Bowers Galleries
Stack’s Bowers Galleries conducts live, Internet and specialized auctions of rare U.S. and world coins and currency and ancient coins, as well as direct sales through retail and wholesale channels. The company’s 80-year legacy includes the cataloging and sale of many of the most valuable United States coin and currency collections to ever cross an auction block — The D. Brent Pogue Collection, The John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, The Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, The Joel R. Anderson Collection, The Norweb Collection, The Cardinal Collection and The Battle Born Collection — to name just a few. World coin and currency collections include The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection of World Gold Coins, The Kroisos Collection, The Alicia and Sidney Belzberg Collection, The Wa She Wong Collection, The Guia Collection, The Thos. H. Law Collection, and The Robert O. Ebert Collection.
Topping off this amazing numismatic history is the inclusion of the world record for the highest price ever realized at auction for a rare coin, the 1794 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar graded Specimen-66 (PCGS) that realized over $10 million, part of their sale of the famed Cardinal Collection. The company is headquartered in Santa Ana, California, with offices in New York, Tulsa, Wolfeboro, Hong Kong, and Paris. Stack’s Bowers Galleries is an Official Auctioneer for several important numismatic conventions, including American Numismatic Association events, the New York International Numismatic Convention, the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Spring, Summer and Winter Expos, and its April and August Hong Kong Auctions.
