1792 Half Disme Sells for Record $2.93 Million at Heritage, Leading $19.4 Million Numismatic Auctions

One of the earliest and most historically important coins in the United States has sold for a record $2.928 million at Heritage Auctions. The 1792 Half Disme, graded MS68 by PCGS, drew 66 bids during Heritage’s October 8-9 GACC U.S. Coins Signature Auction. The result more than doubled the previous auction record for any Half Disme, which Heritage says was $1.41 million set in 2013.

The coin came from the Ronald Firman Collection and is the only 1792 Half Disme graded MS68 by PCGS. Heritage describes it as the finest surviving example of the first federal U.S. coin struck for circulation under the authority of the Mint Act of April 2, 1792. Although Half Dismes have traditionally been grouped with the experimental issues and patterns of 1792, Heritage notes that they occupy a particularly important place in American numismatic history because they were the first circulating coinage produced under the authority of the newly established federal Mint. President George Washington even referred to the country’s “small beginning” in coinage during his November 1792 address to Congress.

The record-setting example stands above the famous Starr-Rodriguez specimen, which is certified Specimen-67. Heritage highlighted the MS68 coin’s mint luster, preservation and natural toning, which includes shades of silver-gray, rose, amber, gold and blue. The $2.928 million Half Disme led Heritage’s U.S. coins auction to $10,665,743. Combined with the auction house’s October 6-9 GACC U.S. Currency Signature Auction, which totaled $8,727,555, the two events generated $19,393,298.

Another Half Disme in the sale showed just how wide the market can be for the historic issue. A circulated example graded VG10 by PCGS sold for $85,400. Heritage says between 1,500 and 2,000 Half Dismes were originally struck, with production beginning in the cellar of Philadelphia sawmaker John Harper before the first U.S. Mint building was ready.

One of the auction’s biggest surprises came from a newly discovered 1867-S Liberty Half Eagle graded MS63 by PCGS. The coin sold for $97,600, more than four times the previous auction record of $22,800. Heritage says the previously unknown coin is now considered the finest-known example of the date, ranking two full grade points above the next-highest-graded specimen.

Its discovery story is almost as unusual as the result. During an estate evaluation in Buda, Texas, a green milk crate was found inside a bedroom closet holding an old cigar box and two shoe boxes. The 1867-S Half Eagle was inside the cigar box with other period coins. Family members said the collection came from relatives in Columbus, Ohio, and is believed to have originated with their great-grandfather, a Union soldier during the Civil War.

Other notable coin results included an 1898 Liberty Double Eagle graded PR65 Deep Cameo by PCGS at $238,577, a 1907 Saint-Gaudens High Relief Double Eagle graded MS66 at $97,600 and an 1861-O Liberty Double Eagle graded AU53 PCGS CAC at $91,500.

Heritage’s accompanying currency auction produced several major results of its own. A Series 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Note graded PMG Choice Uncirculated 63 sold for $244,000, making it the top lot of the $8.7 million currency sale. The note came from the famed Binion Hoard of 100 Series 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Notes.

A $5,000 Federal Reserve Note from the same 1934 series sold for $146,400, while the D.B. Cooper ransom-money $20 bill recently covered by CollectiblesNews.com brought $134,200. Heritage says the surviving Cooper fragment retains both serial numbers along with a substantial portion of the original note and was confirmed as part of the $200,000 ransom paid during the 1971 hijacking.