Realizations include buyer’s premium.
Thousands of bidders vied for the Marlborough Collection’s 219 George V-era 25-cent coins this April, with a pair of high-grade rarities leading the way.
Together, the two coins – described by auctioneers as a gem-certified key-date coin plus an “elite gem” formerly from the Belzberg Collection – brought about $33,000 US (more than $40,000 Cdn.). With the other 217 lots, all of which were sold, the collection realized $245,924 US (about $305,000 Cdn.) with a total of 2,686 bidders participating through Heritage Auctions’ online platform.
Each George V year-date was represented, ranging from 1911, when he became the monarch after the death of Edward VII, until 1936, when he died and was replaced on the obverse of Canada’s decimal currency with George VI.
Each of the collection’s coins – other than a 1915 issue in Extremely Fine-45 that brought $660 as Lot 99039 – was certified in Mint-State (MS) condition.
The sale’s top-selling coin, described by auctioneers as one of the “stars of this collection,” was the gem-certified 1915 issue. In MS-65 from International Coin Certification Service (ICCS), the coin is among the finest known examples and – owing to its condition and rarity – “ranks as one of the indisputable stars of this collection,” auctioneers said,
It sold for $18,000 US (about $22,300 Cdn.), nearly doubling its $10,000 US estimate as Lot 99038.
Certified as Mint State-67, one of the finest known 1933 George V 25-cent coins (obverse shown) topped its estimate by five times when it sold for nearly $20,000. That’s about double what this example last sold for at auction in 2019.
The other lot that sold for more than $10,000 US was a 1933 “elite gem” formerly from the Belzberg Collection, which was sold by Heritage in January 2003.
In 2003, this example brought $2,990 US as Lot 15440 of the Belzberg Collection, which realized nearly $3 million US altogether.
More recently, in September 2019, the coin brought $5,760 US as Lot 31180 of the James Mossman Collection, also offered by Heritage.
This April, offered as Lot 99157, the coin crossed the block for $15,600 US (about $19,350 Cdn.), topping its $3,000 US estimate by five times. One of the finest known examples, it’s certified as MS-67 by Professional Coin Grading Service.