Greysheet: "GreatCollections Pays $3.84 Million for Rare $20 Gold Coin in Dallas Auction"
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GreatCollections Pays $3.84 Million for Rare $20 Gold Coin in Dallas Auction
1927-D Saint-Gaudens rarity is one of only a dozen examples known.
by Great Collections Coin and Currency Auctions | Published on January 20, 2025
A rare $20 gold coin issued by the Denver Mint in 1927 was acquired by GreatCollections for $3.84 million after spirited bidding on January 16th.
The 1927-D Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle is one of only a few in private hands. It was graded MS-65+ by Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) and approved by Certified Acceptance Corporation (CAC), the two leading third-party grading services for rare coins.
"We are thrilled to have won this Grail of American numismatics. It's a dream coin for collectors, essential for completing a collection of the Saint-Gaudens series. It might be many years before another appears on the market. Our goal was to pay under $4 million, so it worked out perfectly," said Ian Russell, president of GreatCollections.
Only about a dozen 1927-D Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles are known today, out of an original mintage of 180,000. Four are in permanent museum collections, including three examples in the Smithsonian and another in the Museum of Connecticut History. The balance of the original mintage was likely melted following President Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1933 executive order banning private gold ownership.
The coin has a pedigree dating back to the 1940s before being acquired by Orange County resident and respected numismatist Dr. Steven Duckor in 1984 for just $198,000. Over the past thirty years, the rare coin market has increased significantly, especially for trophy coins and rarities.
The Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle is one of the most iconic and celebrated coins in American numismatic history, issued from 1907 to 1933. It was commissioned by President Theodore Roosevelt as part of his effort to beautify U.S. coinage in the early 20th century. The design is considered a masterpiece and still routinely ranks worldwide as one of the most iconic coin designs ever.
Duckor studied the Saint-Gaudens series, among others, and assembled one of the finest collections, long before third-party coin grading services such as PCGS and CAC changed the market.
“The Duckor pedigree for Saint-Gaudens is one we value; many of the coins in his former set are currently in the finest collections owned by clients of GreatCollections, including the all-time #1 set - the Elite Collection,” continued Russell.
Last sold for $2,160,000.00 at Heritage January 9, 2020.
1927-D Double Eagle, Ex: Dr. Steven Duckor, MS65+
Rarest Regular-Issue 20th Century American Coin
Likely Seven Examples Publicly Available
1927-D $20 MS65+ PCGS. CAC. Ex: Fox-Duckor. It is an honor and a privilege whenever Heritage Auctions has the opportunity to offer a 1927-D double eagle, the rarest regular-issue United States coin -- whether gold, silver, nickel, or copper -- struck during the 20th century. The present example, certified MS65+ by PCGS, rests solidly in the lower Condition Census for the issue, behind the finest-known Phillip Morse coin in MS67 and four other pieces in MS66 at PCGS (11/19).
It has been five years now since we handled a 1927-D double eagle, the previous appearance coming during our March 2014 sale of the Donald E. Bently Collection, when we offered the piece listed as #7 in the roster below. That MS63 PCGS coin crossed our auction block at $1,292,500.
Comments
Did GC pay 10% or 20% commission?
interesting the provenance changed on the label
The high end rarities are going to continue to outperform with all the inflated currency out there.
Looks like Ian and Raeleen are collectors.
Based upon what?
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Coin World reporting on the event.
CoinWorld Link
"GreatCollections manages wantlists and assists collectors with all aspects of numismatics, aside from their own weekly auctions of certified coins and paper money." Emphasis added.
“The Duckor pedigree for Saint-Gaudens is one we value...."
It's not unreasonable considering their successes. In addition, the news release doesn't specifically state Great Collections was acting as an agent
While it wasn’t unreasonable for you to have reached that conclusion, I believe that it was incorrect.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
the odds favor buyer's agent, and discretion from GC means the answer re:that side won't come from them unless allowed by the buyer
I was there for the FUN 2020 auction, it was great being in the audience. My 1st big coin event.
Quote from Ian at MyCollect: "I've just acquired this 1927-D Saint-Gaudens Gold Double Eagle PCGS MS-65+ (CAC Green). Trophy Saint. Good start to 2025."
Coin Photographer.
That’s better than having 38 bitcoins.
Didn't I read a post about how soft the coin market is currently?
>
That coin looks better than MS-65.
What a way to go!
It's ironic that some of the GC fan boys around here refuse to bid in Heritage Auctions.
on topic?
If so, GC should of said "we".😀
Definitely
So how will it ship or will someone just go and get it?
Coins like that pretty much travel one way if not carried in person- armored truck.
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Here's a 66 for comparison. Sold for $4,440,000.00 at Heritage August 22, 2022.
"1927-D. GEM Brilliant Uncirculated. The Akers Plate Coin, though not so indicated in the text. Unequivocally one of the finest known. The 1927-D stands as a giant among all United States coins, and is the rarest of all 20th Century gold coins struck for regular circulation. Both the obverse and reverse of this extremely rare piece are beautifully toned in a rich, medium yellow shade of gold. The fields are satiny smooth and the complete, original mint lustre creates perfectly unbroken cartwheels on both sides. There are a couple of tiny obverse marks Through the rays to the right of Liberty - but these are insignificant and do not interfere with any of the essential design elements. The strike is sharp, with Liberty's face full, her nose complete, and her mouth visible. At her feet, many of the columns in the Capitol Dome can be seen without the aid of magnification. The all-important mint mark above the date is clear, sharp, and bold. On the reverse, all the feathers in the eagle's breast are separate and visible, as are the sun rays behind it. Naturally, the eagle has the short, die scratch through its beak, a hallmark of this classic grand rarity."
Heritage Link
Seems like a lot of marks on the reverse rays for a 66, but what do I know.
Looks like a 65 obv and 64 rev to me (but I'm only wrong 90% of the time). No CAC is no surprise.
It's a wonderful coin. Would be nice if Ian let us know if it is being kept as a collectibles or (gasp!) investment or if he was acting as a broker.
That's some serious change, but maybe he's got it like that! 🏆
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
Seems like the positive attributes are supposed to negate the negative ones. Acceptance depends on which ones you care to live with.
The Dallas Bank/Simpson 1927-D is generally regarded as the 3rd Best of all the 1927-D's known.
I find it funny that no where in any of these ads (er...articles) is it mentioned the auction firm that sold the coin. I had to do some digging to figure out that it was Heritage. Mr. Russell couldn't bear to give his competitor any acknowledgement.
You say "Dallas auction" everyone knows it was Heritage...
Here's the GreatPhoto of this incredible rarity!
Phil Arnold
Director of Photography, GreatCollections
greatcollections.com
In a few years you'll wish you had 38 Bitcoins in which you could re-acquire the coin at a premium and have lots of money left over.
At least Ian isn't "too proud" to shop at and financially support another auction venue.
http://ProofCollection.Net
Based on how few examples are known and potentially available, he might not have had a choice. And if, as I’d bet, he acquired the coin for a client, it would be hard to say no, even if he didn’t want to support Heritage.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I think our hobby has room for both HA and GC. I'm just a small player but I've used both and have nothing but good things to say about both....and this from someone who used eBay for 20 years and otherwise just my LCS and small coin shows.
HA and GC are a delight.
My one quibble with GC is that on some coins -- especially "Trophy" coins -- they don't have too much of a write-up or description on provenance and history.
I LOVE the HA commentaries on Saints -- many feature comments from experts like Akers or Burdette -- and think they are invaluable. If you are not an expert on a series, you can punch up the premier coins for that type on the HA Archives and get a world of information, much of which isn't available in books or elsewhere online.
Don't you have "insider information" and know exactly what is the case?
So please correct me if I am mistaken, but it looks like my Simpson Pedigree coin that I recently won on GC was at one time part of the same set that housed this marvelous marvelous rarity. Is it possible that the plastic slabs actually touched or rubbed against each other. Could some of that value rub onto my 1920 Saint?
There was an interview with Ian by Greysheet recently where Ian said he did not collect coins IIRC. It stuck out in the interview given what he does. It should be confirmed tho’…...
It isn't the Saint that it is worth 3.84 million. It is that little "D" on the coin that makes it worth 3.84 million. I wonder if someone were to shave off that D and weigh it, what would be the price per ounce?
This coin which you purchased from my collection was in fact part of Simpson's main collection. PCGS only lists 2 higher. You made an excellent purchase at at price lower than I paid when Simpson's main collection was sold. The Elite collection now has surpassed Simpson has the greatest Saint' collection in the PCGS registry.
Thank you George. I am honored to own a Simpson/ @gschwernk pedigree coin. It is a keeper and one that I will always cherish.