Trivia Question -- Highest Multiple of Face Value Paid for a Coin

supercoin · August 7, 2002 2:35AM

The 1933 Saint has handily grabbed the record as the most expensive coin ever.

But it sold for a mere 425,000 time its face value ($8.5M / $20 = 425,000).

What's the highest premium ever paid as a multiple of face value?

I'll start the bidding with the 1804 bust dollar -- 4,000,000 time face value.

clw54 · August 7, 2002 2:37AM

Probably a 1913 nickel.

2,300,000 / .05 = 46,000,000

gmarguli · August 7, 2002 2:59AM

Didn't a 1793 1¢ sell for close to $1 million. That should be the record.

tradedollarnut · August 7, 2002 3:06AM

Parrino asked $1M for a 1793 cent....then at the same auction as the 1913 nickel it sold for about $180,000.

The nickel sold for about $1.8M, not $2.3M. Still a very impressive multiple. But I'm certain several large cents have sold for more than one fifth of that, so that's where the record probably resides.

dbldie55 · August 7, 2002 3:07AM

Yes, but it sold for $1,840,000 which is 36,800,000 times face. Waited to long to hit reply.

A cent would have to sell for more than $368,000 be qualify as the highest.

gmarguli · August 7, 2002 3:21AM

$368,000?

OK, so the Wreath in MS69BN sold for $180,000. What about the PR68RD?

How about the MS67BN Chain cent?

tradedollarnut · August 7, 2002 3:22AM

I'd be willing to bet that the Atwater coin (THE COIN) sold for more than that amount. That's why I suspect that the record lies in the large cent arena.

Placid · August 7, 2002 3:23AM

Any 1/2 cents sell for alot?

clw54 · August 7, 2002 3:27AM

<< <i>Parrino asked $1M for a 1793 cent....then at the same auction as the 1913 nickel it sold for about $180,000.

The nickel sold for about $1.8M, not $2.3M. Still a very impressive multiple. But I'm certain several large cents have sold for more than one fifth of that, so that's where the record probably resides. >>

The $2,300,000 came from Numismedia.

Pushkin · August 7, 2002 3:32AM

You will never know for sure - you only know the results of public sales, lots of really high priced material is sold privately.

tradedollarnut · August 7, 2002 3:44AM

When I purchased the 1885 trade dollar, Coin World required a notorized bill of sale before they would even report the transaction because too many sales had been "fluffed" in the past. So Pushkin is absolutely right about not knowing for sure.

The nickel definitely sold for $1.8M - I was there (and even bid on it up to a point). Don't know where Numismedia got that $2.3M price.

Pushkin · August 7, 2002 3:52AM

I think you are going to find that Tradedollarnut's nickel sets the public sale multiple record for US coins. I don't know what the public sale multiple record is for world coins. There might be some British stuff or antiquities that have a higher multiple (how do you put a multiple on a Greek copper owl?).

Pushkin · August 7, 2002 3:57AM

Seems to me that some old British farthings and ha'pences went for some pretty big bucks (pounds?) a few years ago.

clw54 · August 7, 2002 4:02AM

Looks like I was wrong about the 1913 nickel price. Coinfacts.com doesn't show a sale over 2 mil.

Coinstartled · April 18, 2018 9:14PM

1792 birch cent sold for $2,585,000 in 2015.

BeefCurry808 · April 18, 2018 9:26PM

I will have to say the sale of the unique 1943 D copper penny at $1,700,000.00.

Timbuk3 · April 18, 2018 9:38PM

Sweet !!!

Jeffnlu · April 18, 2018 11:09PM

Wait until a certain someone's double ear Lincoln hits the open market.

yosclimber · April 19, 2018 12:32AM

@Coinstartled said:
1792 birch cent sold for $2,585,000 in 2015.

This J-4 MS-65 RB appears to be the auction record for price/face,
but the overall record looks like the J-1 silver center SP-67 BN which reportedly sold for $5m in a private transaction, January 2012.
http://www.pcgscoinfacts.com/Coin/Detail/11001

oih82w8 · April 19, 2018 5:00AM

Ooooh, there were some scary looking women models back in the day...this and the Chain Cent design.

ms70 · April 19, 2018 6:49AM

I just checked my own records just for fun..... 50,380 x face value. That makes me feel like a millionaire!

I would've guessed the 1943-D copper cent too but now I see others that are way higher.

tradedollarnut · April 19, 2018 7:19AM

$3M for the SP65 1793 large cent

FredWeinberg · April 19, 2018 9:59AM

....further down the list would be
the 1794 Half Cent that went
for over $1Million.

....the one I bought in Europe for $1,000
back in 1978

carabonnair · April 19, 2018 10:59AM

I thought it might be the 1794 pattern mill (or 1/10 of a cent), Judd 15, Pollock 19. But then I checked the prices realized and it sold for a mere $74,750.

CoinPhysicist · April 19, 2018 11:16AM

PCGS MS 67 RB No Pole 1796 Half Cent: D. Brent Pogue Collection - Stack's/Bowers 2/2016:3008, $763,750. That's a multiple of 152.75 million. To beat this multiple, you'd need a large cent to sell for over 1.5275 million, which looks like it's happened based off some of the posts here.

Coinstartled · April 19, 2018 11:23AM

@FredWeinberg said:
....further down the list would be
the 1794 Half Cent that went
for over $1Million.

....the one I bought in Europe for $1,000
back in 1978

We need a "yikes" option in the smiley section.

3keepSECRETif2rDEAD · April 19, 2018 11:25AM

...put me down for the 1909 VDD cent that's now forever part of the Mars rover Curiosity...2.5 billion was the cost for that baby...game over

ricko · April 20, 2018 6:06AM

When you tell of these prices to non coin collectors, they look at you as if you had green hair and a third eye in your forehead.....'They paid what for a cent? (though they usually say penny)"....Cheers, RickO

Trivia Question -- Highest Multiple of Face Value Paid for a Coin

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