DailyMail.com: "Family stunned at value of rare gold coin collection they've kept for 100 years"
Goldbully
Posts: 17,348 ✭✭✭✭✭
I agree with J.A. - "It’s nice to know there are still great coins out there. It gives us hope."
Any forum member ever hold an MS68 1863 $1 Gold Princess in their hand before?
What an incredible coin.
Edited to add: Kudos to Henry Chapman, historic coin collector.
Family stunned at value of rare gold coin collection they've kept for 100 years
By James Cirrone For Dailymail.Com
Published: 15:27 EST, 4 November 2024
A family has learned the rare gold coins they held onto for over 100 years weren't worth $50,000 like they thought, but rather a staggering $2 million.
The 19th century collection, put together by historic coin collector Henry Chapman in 1899, was taken out from a Philadelphia bank vault earlier this year, where it had been safely stored for decades.
There were 51 Liberty Head and Indian Head gold dollar coins minted between 1849 and 1889, as well as eight US commemorative gold dollars made in the early 20th century.
The Philadelphia-area family who owned the set, now deemed 'The Henry Chapman Collection of $1 Gold,' thought it was worth $50,000 before they had it appraised.
Luis Martinez, founder and president of Matador Rare Coins, told CoinWorld that he was working with the owners, who were 'astonished' when they found out the real value of the collection: $2 million.
'When I shared the results with the owners, they were astonished and filled with disbelief. A collection they would have sold for about $50,000 could now potentially bring in well over seven figures at auction!' Martinez said.
The coins were graded and certified by the Professional Coin Grading Service after Martinez inspected them. The grading results, he said, exceeded his expectations and reached 'the finest known tier.'
'When I received the coins, I carefully reviewed each example. Housed in the original envelopes from Henry Chapman’s shop in Philadelphia, a number of the coins carried exuberant eye appeal,' he said. 'I was truly in awe as I reviewed each coin one at a time. I knew then that this collection could truly be a national treasure.'
The Professional Coin Grading Service agreed with Martinez's assessment.
'This historic collection boasts not only magnificent rarities and grades, but also hails from the cabinets of renowned collector Henry Chapman. Preserving the coins themselves and their history is an honor,' said PCGS President Stephanie Sabin.
Martinez explained that the United States began making $1 gold pieces in 1849, just one year after California's gold rush sent speculators scrambling westward to strike it rich.
'A little smaller than a modern US dime, the gold dollars were struck over the years with three different designs,' he said.
The first kind, Liberty Head (also known as the Coronet design), were manufactured from 1849 to 1856.
Small Indian Head, also known as Indian Princess, were made from 1854 to 1856, and the Indian Princess Large Head type were minted from 1856 to 1889.
Some of the notable commemorative coins in the collection included the McKinley version of the 1903 Louisiana Purchase Exposition Gold Dollar and the Lewis and Clark Exposition Gold Dollar.
John Albanese, founder of Certified Acceptance Corp., which also looked at the coins, said the collection gave him hope.
'I’ve been around the numismatic block a few times since the 1970s and thought we’ve seen probably everything there is to see in great collections,' Albanese said. 'I almost fell off the chair when these coins came in. It’s nice to know there are still great coins out there. It gives us hope.'
Comments
Nice and great for the family.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
golden
Amazing!!
Phenomenal. I wonder outlaid why nobody has ever mention Henry Chapman's coins. Was it not known that there was this collection in existence?
Really interesting mix of super high grade coins and damaged net grade coins. A testament to how coins were collected back then. Not the emphasis on perfect condition, but some that just happened to be choice.
It’s amazing they were in the deposit box that long and nobody looked through it.
Isn't it far more likely that Henry Chapman was the collector's source, not the person who actually put together the collection? Regardless, some of those coins look fabulous!
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
I am very surprised that the title of the Daily Mail article did not have the word BOMBSHELL in it.
Would Henry Chapman be considered a founding father of numismatics?
They call him a legend in the coin business in Philadelphia, PA.
stacksbowers.com link
Another thread on this subject linked below, though no one would know it from the thread’s title:
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1108661/when-is-coin-news-not-news
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
But I’ve learned from numerous posters here that the previously ungraded coins couldn’t have been valuable (while they were collecting dust for decades)! After all, “there’s a reason that they’re raw”. 😉
This is yet another good example illustrating the point that sometimes the reason is simply because the owners haven’t submitted them.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
As @MrEureka posted “Isn't it far more likely that Henry Chapman was the collector's source, not the person who actually put together the collection?” And the answer is “Yes”.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Qoute from another written source:
"Chapman personally began assembling this collection for a banking family in 1899, and the coins have remained in the family’s possession continuously for generations,” said Martinez. “The set includes several coins among the finest-known examples of their kind today, and there are gold dollars struck at the Charlotte, Dahlonega, New Orleans, Philadelphia, and San Francisco Mints."
So you two are absolutely correct. I misread the article and assumed that since Chapman emanated from Philly and these coins were also found in Philly the coin s were from his own personal collection.
I think Mr Martinez is not being very truthful in his $2 million estimate of value. After reviewing the collection on Stacks, I believe it is worth nowhere near the $2 mill that the dealer claims. The coin in the pic, the 1863 MS68, represents way more than the rest of the collection combined. The story states there are 51 gold dollars plus 8 commemorative 1900's era gold dollars. So $2 mill divided by 59 means each coin would have to average $34,000. Not even close. Over a fourth of the coins are net graded problems worth less than $300 each. There are a handful of proofs and C and D mint coins that might go for $15 to 20k each. There is no 1861-d, 1855-d, and several of the other C and D mints are net graded. The 1863 is the finest known and might hit $250k, but the rest will not total $200k.