Next month in Colorado, Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) will display two sets of vintage rarities at the American Numismatic Association (ANA) World’s Fair of Money.
The Resolute Americana Collection of 1776 Continental Dollars and the 1897 Szechuan Province Ferracute Pattern Set will be displayed publicly for the first time at the upcoming five-day show, which runs from Aug. 1-5 in Denver, Colo.
Both iconic sets will be shown at the NGC booth (#102) throughout the show.
RESOLUTE AMERICANA COLLECTION of 1776 CONTINENTAL DOLLARS
The Resolute Americana Collection of 1776 Continental Dollars boasts 15 NGC-certified examples of these important coins, representing all known varieties. It’s considered the finest and most complete set of continental dollars ever assembled.
Continental dollars have enjoy long-time popularity among numismatists and collectors of U.S. coinage. Struck in 1776 by the Continental Congress, these pieces have a symbolic design of 13 interlocked rings, each with the name of a different colony. In the centre is the text “AMERICAN CONGRESS” and “WE ARE ONE.”
According to NGC, the Resolute Americana Collection of 1776 Continental Dollars has been “carefully curated by a serious student of these coins, who desired to have one example of every known variety.”
The set’s 15 coins include nine in pewter; four in brass; and two in silver. Among these are the only two continental dollars known with a plain edge, one of which was only discovered in June.
This exhibit also features two other NGC-certified coins from the Resolute Americana Collection—a 1783 Treaty of Paris medal graded NGC About Uncirculated-55 and a 1787 Fugio cent graded NGC Mint State-66 Red Brown. Both of these coins feature designs that pay tribute to the 1776 continental dollars.
To see the Resolute Americana Collection of 1776 Continental Dollars, click here.
1897 SZECHUAN PROVINCE FERRACUTE PATTERN SET
The 1897 Szechuan Province Ferracute Pattern Set is comprised of 10 NGC-certified pattern coins struck in 1897 by the Ferracute Machine Company of New Jersey for a new mint in Szechuan Province, China. Considered to be among the greatest vintage Chinese rarities, the Szechuan Ferracute Patterns also have significant connections to American numismatics.
On March 24, 1897, Ferracute struck a small number of patterns in brass—and an even smaller number in silver—to demonstrate equipment it made for a new mint in Szechuan Province. Among those present for the demonstration was U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Charles Barber, who had engraved the dies for these patterns.
Only three complete sets of 1897 Ferracute Szechuan Patterns are known to have survived. The set that will be displayed by NGC at the ANA World’s Fair of Money had been owned for a number of years by the American Trading Company, which had worked with Ferracute to deliver the minting equipment to China.
The 10 pattern coins had been displayed in a wooden case for more than a century. The coins were glued to the back of the case and required professional conservation.
Numismatic Conservation Services (NCS), an independent affiliate of NGC, “expertly removed the glue and attached fibers while preserving the coins’ attractive, original patina,” according to a press release issued by NGC.
After conservation, the coins were authenticated by the newly established NGC Advanced Chinese Authentication Bureau (ACAB), graded by NGC and encapsulated in NGC’s secure, protective holder.
To see the 1897 Szechuan Ferracute Pattern Set, click here.