A 95-year-old Canadian cent in Mint State-65 Red is expected to bring upwards of $10,000 at the upcoming Colonial Acres Premier Spring Auction this May 26-27.
Certified by International Coin Certification Service (ICCS), the 1922 one-cent coin will be offered as Lot 269 of the 1,692-lot sale, and according to auctioneers of the Kitchener-based business, interest continues to build leading up to the sale’s closing event at the end of May. Bidding began May 12 and the live event will take place May 26 and 27 at 5:30 p.m.
“We have 20 auctions under our belt now,” said co-owner Kirk Parsons, who added this is Colonials fifth “Premier” sale, which are held biannually by the auction house. “We’re still growing and we still have a very high sell-through rate, which is not always something all auction houses can do.”
Lot 269 is this 1922 one-cent coin with an estimate of $8,000-$10,000.
PREMIER SALE
Colonial’s Premier sales are geared towards “better material and high-calibre items,” Parsons said, adding this sale in particular will feature several key date pieces as well as error coins and banknotes.
“We had an idea to do around 1,400 lots, but with consignments we were over 2,000 and had to cut it back so it would be manageable,” he said, adding consignments are “already in the pipeline” for the Fall sale.
Other material on offer includes Canadian decimal Canadian paper money, world coins and paper money, gold coins, U.S. decimal, error coins, Royal Canadian Mint products, Maritime coins, group lots and more.
“We strive to create auctions that appeal to all collectors by offering a wide spread of material covering all the collecting fields,” said Parsons. “We offer material for every kind of collector. Some auction houses are really good at what they do, and they’ll focus on one field – such as banknotes or tokens – but we try to do everything and cover it all, which is why I think we attract such a good crowd.”
Lot 71 includes this uncut sheet of $2 Birds of Canada banknotes (shown above) as well as a four-coin platinum and gold set.
COINAGE
Other highlights include Lot 71, a 2016 four-coin platinum and gold set celebrating the 20th anniversary of Canada’s $2 coin, the “toonie,” as well as a 1986 Birds of Canada sheet of $2 uncut banknotes.
The four-coin set comes displayed in a wooden box and includes two pure platinum coins and two pure gold coins. The first platinum coin replicates the design of the current $2 coin, and the second platinum coin features the number “2” and the Parliament Buildings of Canada from the last issue of the Canadian $2 banknote on the reverse. The first gold coin depicts a magnified view of the original polar bear design from the 1992 toonie, and the remaining gold coin features a vignette depicting the two robins from the last issue of Canada’s $2 banknote. The obverse of all four coins depicts the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II.
This lot has an estimate of $11,000-$11,499.95 and a starting bid of $8,700.
Lot 1583 is this 1911 five-coin Specimen set with an estimate of $8,500-$10,000.
Lot 1583 is a 1911 five-coin Specimen set in its original Royal Canadian Mint case.
“It’s a nice set in a desirable year and with a pristine case,” said Parsons, who added this lot could also bring upwards of $10,000. It has a starting bid of $6,250.
Another coinage highlight is Lot 1059, a 1938 silver dollar in ICCS MS-65 and with a pre-sale estimate of $4,750-$5,000.
“It is a really attractive coin,” said Parsons, “and tough to get.”
ERRORS, VARIETIES & TOKENS
Lot 121 is an 1858 one-cent coinage alignment error in ICCS Fine-12. This rare “upset dies” error is expected to bring $2,000-$5,000.
“Two examples have been certified to date,” said Parsons. “It’s the 1858 penny, but the dies were upside down. It is what it is; people who really want that variety, there are only two out there to buy. And it’ll draw a lot of attention because of the rarity.”
Lot 1059 is this 1938 silver dollar in ICCS MS-65.
Lot 430 is a 2006-P non-magnetic one-cent coin in ICCS MS-65 Red.
“More of a modern-day rarity,” according to Parsons, this lot is expected to bring $3,000-$5,000 after a starting bid of $2,000. “It’s one of the tougher ones to find of the P non-magnetic varieties, and it’s very scarce.”
Moving on to tokens there’s Lot 32, an 1828 brass token in ICCS Very Fine-30 with a pre-sale estimate of $1,900-$2,000.
“It’s attractive mid-grade token, and you don’t see that one too often,” said Parsons. “For token guys, that’s one that they’ll be desirable over.”
Lot 1397 includes three consecutive Dominion notes, each graded PMG Choice Uncirculated-64 EPQ.
PAPER MONEY
Rounding out the highlights is a paper money offering, Lot 1397, which consists of three consecutive Dominion notes, each in Paper Money Guaranty (PMG) Choice Uncirculated-64 EPQ (exceptional paper quality). The serial numbers read “D7055181,” “D7055182” and “D70551813.”
“It’s a neat little run,” added Parsons, who said the lot is expected to bring $3,500-$4,500.
For a PDF of the auction catalogue, visit colonialacres.com/v/vspfiles/files/pdf/May-26-27th-catalouge.pdf.
To place a bid online, visit icollector.com/May-26-27th-Premier-Numismatic-Auction_a30172?m=all.
UPCOMING COLONIAL SALES
Colonial Acres will also be hosting a series of other auctions leading up to this winter. On June 18, Colonial will host its second annual sale of Royal Canadian Mint products with more than 750 lots dating from the 1960s to 2016. This will be followed by Colonial’s July 30 “Summer Markdown Madness Sale,” which will feature estate collections, over-stocked items, gold and silver bullion, paper money, group lots of tokens, world sets, original rolls and more. Lastly, on Sept. 3, Colonial will host another auction of estate collections, over-stocked items, gold and silver bullion, paper money and more.