The Top 20 Greatest Error Coins of All Time
Zoins
Posts: 34,113 ✭✭✭✭✭
Here's a running list of the most expensive error coins as a proxy of the "the top":
- $840,000 - 1943-D Bronze Cent - PCGS MS64BN - Bob Simpson specimen - Jan 20, 2021
- $504,000 - 1943-S Bronze Cent - PCGS MS63BN CAC - Merl D. Burcham, Bob Simpson specimen - Nov 19, 2020
- $400,000 - 1913 Gold Buffalo Nickel - NGC AU53 - Mike Byers
- $372,000 - 1943 Bronze Cent - PCGS MS62BN - Marvin Beyer discovery, Bob Simpson specimen - Feb 23, 2021
- $348,000 - 1943 Bronze Cent - PCGS MS62BN CAC - Albert Michael Pratt specimen - Apr 24, 2021
- $305,500 - 1943 Bronze Cent - PCGS AU58 CAC - Bob Simpson specimen - Jan 7, 2016
- $282,000 - 1943 Bronze Cent - NGC MS62BN CAC - Albert Michael Pratt specimen - Aug 2, 2017
- $282,000 - 1943-S Bronze Cent - PCGS AU58 CAC - Bob Simpson specimen - Feb 4, 2016
- $264,500 - 1916 Buffalo Nickel DDO, FS-016, Breen-2599 - PCGS MS64 - Sep 22, 2005
- $258,500 - 1918/7-D Buffalo Nickel - PCGS MS65 - Aug 9, 2013
- $253,000 - 1905 Indian Cent struck on a Quarter Eagle Planchet - PCGS MS64 - Jan 7, 2010
- $240,000 - 1943 Bronze Cent - NGC AU58BN CAC - Donald Groves Patrick specimen - Apr 22, 2021
Mike had a great comment on the Top 20 Error Coins in the following thread, so the question is what are the Top 20 Error Coins?
@Byers said:
All of the top 20 ( had to pick a number) are incredible mint errors and combine rarity, provenance and dramatic eye-appeal!
I really like the 100 Greatest book series, but @FredWeinberg just mentioned that some top coins aren't in the book due to lack of photos.
@FredWeinberg said:
If we had access to the actual coin to photograph it for the book it would’ve been in the top 10.
And 100 tends to be a lot of coins to comprehend, so what are the top 20 error coins and can we get photos for all of them?
Here are some candidates:
1886 Morgan Dollar - Obverse Die Cap Mint Error - PCGS MS64 - Ex. Virgil Michael Brand; Amon Giles Carter Sr.
Comments
Interesting... I would love to find a Buffalo nickel on a $5 gold planchet,... What a great error. Cheers, RickO
Wow... those struck on gold planchet errors, I would have dismissed as plated. Thinking someone did same as racketeer nickel.
Some are in Fred’s book that he co-authored with Nick and Dave, some are in my book, and others are elsewhere including Heritage archives.
I think I own Fred's 4'oclock jacket cover error, looks similar & I bought it from Fred
(1976) Double Struck 25c
It does look similar! What rank is it in Fred’s book?
The three authors of the book, and Whitman, as I recall, agreed
that we had to have physical access of those errors on the list
to be able to take accurate, same lighting, etc., photos.
Yes, we were aware of other errors that should have been on the
list (we handled some of them in the past), but did not want to
print a black and white photo in the book, so yes, the selections
were limited.
We came up with a list of about 200-225 coins, and they were voted
to be in the 'Top 100' by 17-18 people - Error collectors, error dealers,
and 'normal' coin collectors, long-tdime dealers, and some numismatic researchers.
for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
Good to know Fred!
That makes a lot of sense for a book so I can understand.
That being said, this thread isn't a book so we can have more flexibility here
And in the future, hopefully PCGS will let Phil @PCGSPhoto's excellent TrueViews be used for books!
Those Indian cents struck on $2.50 gold planchets are the pinnacle for me.
Just amazing
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
Of course, we have to mention the Harrison Philips coin on the cover of @FredWeinberg's book! It was so great that even Bob Simpson couldn't resist!
1862 Indian Head Cent - #3 of 100 Greatest Errors - PCGS MS67 - Ex. Harrison Phillips, Bob Simpson
They are! The Johnson-Green coin even has a Classic TrueView!
1900 Indian Head Cent - $2.5 Gold Wrong Planchet Error
PCGS MS65
Pedigree: Burdette Garner (B.G.) Johnson, Edward Howland Robinson "Colonel" Green, John Beck, Mike Byers
@DCW said:
“Those Indian cents struck on $2.50 gold planchets are the pinnacle for me.
Just amazing.”
The two gold Indian Cents were among my top 5 favorites that I ever owned.
Those are really amazing coins Mike!
It's great NGC adds the "BYERS COLLECTION" provenance to the inserts. PCGS needs to do the same!
@Zoins said:
It's great NGC adds the "BYERS COLLECTION" provenance to the inserts. PCGS needs to do the same!
PCGS did a special insert for Fred Weinberg for his mint errors that will be auctioned by Heritage:
https://minterrornews.com/news-8-5-21-fred-weinbergs-personal-error-coin-rarities-on-display-in-heritage-auctions-ana-booth.html
Allow me to gently lob a hand grenade and say that I would rather see a black and white photo of a fabulous error than to pretend that it does not exist.
Some day I might rent a room in Colorado Springs and spend my days looking for the black & white negative of that Turban Head $10 we saw that had the full obverse brockage on the reverse and was then restruck six more times "normally" to obliterate it. I'll get a print of it and submit it for the next edition.
The focus should be on the error, not the picture. Otherwise the title should read "100 Greatest U.S. Error Coin Pictures."
MOO
TD
Those gold off-metals are fantastic, but are they really "errors"?
If we limit the field to actual errors that left the mint through normal channels, the list might be quite different.
It might even include this 2015 nickel that was struck again in 2016. I think it was found by a forum member.
I think so. Stuff does happen.
Obviously intentionally struck gold Indian Cents.
Tom, I understand your position -
The three of us, and Whitman, did it
different than that - and yes, I guess
we deserve some lobbed grenades -
couldn't have come from a nicer guy!
for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
Cynic that I am, I have no problem accepting the gold struck cents and the nickel as legitimate errors.
When I worked for Coin World I belonged to the Shelby County Coin Club. Our Treasurer (I was Secretary) was the #2 man in the Sidney Police force. He had enough clout that all of the take from the city parking meters came through his office before being deposited. Over the years he found two normal $2-1/2 gold pieces that had apparently been placed into meters as dimes. I can see a gold planchet finding its way into a cent or nickel press. Probably not a dime or a quarter press, because I think that silver coins were inspected more closely after they were struck than minor coins were.
Good info and experience Tom!
Nice to know these may be genuine / accidental errors!
Gold $2&1/2 coins used as Dimes in parking meters smells like a stolen coin collection getting spent.
In mid 80's I got an xf 45 1909S VDB & a vg 1914D in a roll of wheat cents from the credit union. I thought at the time the roll was stolen or cashed out by totally clueless heirs.
I appreciate and respect accidental "errors" far more than "intentional "errors".
I feel the same way about attractive, naturally toned coins, compared to unnaturally toned ones, even if the latter are gorgeous and natural looking. My appreciation is based primarily upon the thought that in one way or another, a coin has defied great odds. In the case of an error, what were the chances that a particular type of error could occur without intentional human assistance? And in the case of a toned coin, what were the chances that it could tone that way, over time, without intentional human assistance? It's the randomness and defiance of great odds that make a coin more special to me.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Given how the hobby has evolved, the TPGs don’t distinguish (at the moment), but we certainly discuss each coin as we are, and especially in a thread like this which focuses on a limited number of coins.
And interesting discussion does happen! From above it seems Mike @Byers was suggesting the gold Indian Head Cents could be intentional but then Tom @CaptHenway replayed his experience which suggested they could have been accidental! This is a very exciting development to me.
What are your thoughts on the gold cents and other coins? Which of the coins shown in this thread do you appreciate far more, if any?
Regarding potentially intentional errors, this has got to be one of the most outrageous errors out there. It broke 6 figures on Heritage this year and was the focus of this thread:
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1056628/i-really-really-really-like-ike-3-piece-eisenhower-dollar-sells-for-over-100-000/p1
Here's the Heritage link and description:
https://coins.ha.com/itm/errors/undated-three-piece-clover-leaf-eisenhower-dollar-struck-on-clad-dime-planchets-pr68-ultra-cameo-ngc/a/1329-5090.s
Is this impressive enough to make it into the Top 20?
Fred's Number 3 top error, the Harrison Phillips "Starburst" 1862 Indian Head Cent die cap error sold for less than half this at $40,800 last year:
https://coins.ha.com/itm/errors/1862-1c-indian-cent-obverse-die-cap-ms67-pcgs/a/1310-10106.s?ic4=GalleryView-Thumbnail-071515
@Zoins
@MFeld
Heritage Auctions has sold many unique and dramatic mint errors recently, both mint state and proof for record prices! It shows how strong the market is for special mint errors!
"Special mint errors" indeed!
Major gold mint errors are rare and special, and this PCGS Broadstruck $10 Liberty in gem condition coming up in HA FUN is worth appreciating:
https://coins.ha.com/itm/errors/-this-item-has-been-entered-into-our-system-and-is-now-going-through-the-imaging-and-describing-process-further-details-will-be-added-before/p/60241-12001.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116
This one is interesting because it remained unnoticed in circulation for so long. A $2½ struck in silver instead of gold.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/early-quarter-eagles/1831-2-1-2-quarter-eagle-struck-on-a-dime-planchet-good-6-ngc/a/1116-3227.s
Pacific Northwest Numismatic Association
@carabonnair
I agree! Fascinating it circulated.
If it had been at least MS 60, it would have brought six figures!
This is cool, I can appreciate fine uncirculated specimens… but the ones that are heavily circulated add to the allure of the hobby being an Everyman’s game… we all have a chance! Cheers.
The 1831 quarter eagle in silver is very interesting!
It's interesting that there has been debate whether it should be classified as a pattern or an error? We have classifications from the following:
This is what Heritage says:
How much would you guess the Choice AU+ Brand-Farouk specimen would go for today?
USPatterns list two:
@Zoins
It’s just my estimate, others may vary😉
Current grade 50k
MS 60-62 100k+
MS 64-65 150-200k
Thanks Mike! Hopefully this coin will reappear so we can get photos along with a better sense of grade! It’s amazing that it last appeared on the market in 1979, though in 2020, I did pick up a piece that last appeared in 1975!
My opinion only, but the damage that was inflicted on the 1913 Buffalo 5c struck on a $5 gold planchet is absolutely brutal. What a shame. Even so, it still has a 'coolness factor' on par with or even exceeding the two Indian Head cents struck on $2.50 gold planchets.
Jeff
The gold buffalo is an amazing coin!
It really needs a straight grade! When this coin can get one, that coin should definitely get one!
check out that eye appeal, that is stunning. i'd love to see it in person.
It has a nice name too, the “Poker Chip.”
Will Mike Faraone win this coin?
It would go great with his other one on his Mint Error News banner:
Ref: https://www.minterrornews.com/
I got curious about the most expensive error coins as a proxy for the "top" coins.
After going through the first two pages of Heritage archives, it seems that 1943 bronze Lincoln Cents dominate the most expensive coins list, followed by Buffalo Nickels and the gold Indian Head Cent. The Gold Indian Head Cent last sold in 2010 so it may be higher on the list if it sold more recently, like many of the 1943 bronze cents.
I added the following running list to the OP while I'll continue to update on top. I removed one duplicate. Let me know if there are others to remove.
I would classify the 1916 DDO and 1918/7-D as die varieties, not errors.
It's an interesting discussion. Heritage calls both of them errors and it appears they could be errors from the Mint's perspective.
Given the prevalence of the 1943 bronze cents, I think we can collapse this to:
I'm still open on the DDO and double dates being Mint Errors or Varieties. While I think they are errors from the Mint's perspective, perhaps they can be classified differently from a collector's or dealer's perspective.
If you classify any overdate as an "error", then your highest priced list will be dominated by the early gold overdates,
like the 1825/4 $2.50, auction record $940k,
https://www.pcgs.com/auctionprices/details/1825-4-ms/8134
and things like the 1827/3 quarter, auction record $705k.
https://www.pcgs.com/auctionprices/details/1827-3-original-pr/85373
Do Heritage or others call that one an error?
I'm wondering if they are all considered errors or if only certain ones?
It doesn't matter what Heritage calls any of these.
An error in this context is something major that happens in striking and they tend to be unique/different.
Contrast with a die variety that is on the dies and tends to produce several examples.
I'd argue that it does to some extent as they have experts and specialists on staff. That being said, their word isn't the end all.
This is an objective way to look at it.
Let’s complicate it further😈
Here is a list of highest prices realized from Heritage Auctions on mint errors and die trials that was published in Mint Error News:
https://minterrornews.com/news-6-22-21-heritage-highest-prices.html