“This is a exceptional result for an exceptional coin,” says Todd Imhof, Executive Vice President of Heritage Auctions. “The 1908 $20 gold coin from the San Francisco mint is among the rarest and most desirable issues in this ever-popular series designed by Augustus Saint Gaudens. This coin found a new home in the cabinet of a savvy connoisseur and the nearly 100 bids executed suggests the marketplace for numismatic trophies remains alive and well.”
One of the top coins in the Citizen Bold Collection that included 109 Morgan dollars – and in the entire auction – was an 1893-S Morgan Dollar, MS63 PCGS that closed at $276,000. This is a Mint State example of the coin acknowledged as the business-strike key of the series. Because of the financial climate at the time, the San Francisco Mint struck just 100,000 dollars in 1893, most of which went into circulation. Today, an Uncirculated 1893-S like the one sold in this auction is widely considered the Holy Grail of a Morgan dollar collection.
The 1893-S Morgan Dollar was one of eight lots in the Citizen Bold Collection that reached six figures, a list that also included:
- $180,000: An 1892-S Morgan Dollar, MS64+ PCGS CAC that is a landmark condition rarity in the series, a prize that trails only the legendary 1893-S in high-grade rarity
1892-S Morgan Dollar, MS64+ - $150,000: An 1856-S Double Eagle, MS66 CAC PCGS from the S.S. Central America, which has come to be known as “the greatest treasure ship in the history of United States shipwrecks,” this example is tied with one other coin for finest known, and it is the sole finest example with CAC endorsement – the result topped the previous auction record of $74,750, which was set in 2012 at Heritage Auctions
1856-S $20 No Serif, Left S, Variety-17O, MS66 - $132,000: A 1795 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar, MS63 NGC that, in this condition, is without question among the top 100 coins of this date
1795 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar, MS63 - $132,000: An 1889-CC Morgan Dollar, MS64 Deep Prooflike NGC that is from a small mintage of 350,000 produced during the second half of the year, and is widely considered the most elusive Morgan dollar from the Carson City Mint
1889-CC Morgan Dollar, MS64 Deep Prooflike
Another collection featured in the auction was the Mercury Rising Collection, Part II, in which one of the highlights was an 1879 Flowing Hair Stella, PR66 Cameo NGC that rode 48 bids to $210,000. Listed among the 100 Greatest U.S. Coins, the 1879 Flowing Hair stellas are acknowledged as the most popular 19th-century pattern issue; it is believed that 425 examples of the 1879 Flowing Hair stella were struck between October 4, 1879 and May 10, 1880, all for inclusion in three-coin pattern sets that also included examples of the 1879 goloid dollar (Judd-1617) and the 1879 goloid metric dollar (Judd-1626). These sets were offered to Congressmen for their bullion cost of $6.10, but not to collectors or the general public until the 1880 congressional term was over.
Also drawing more than 40 bids was an 1866 Liberty Double Eagle, MS64★ Deep Prooflike NGC that climbed to $198,000, topping the previous auction record of $126,500 that was set at Heritage in 2008. Just 138 double eagles dated 1866 have been graded in all Mint State grades by PCGS and NGC combined. Of these, only 14 are graded MS62, one in MS63, and two coins in MS64; all others carry lower grades. Of the two MS64 coins, one is by PCGS and the other is this extraordinary coin by NGC, which has been awarded the NGC Star designation with Deep Prooflike status. No finer business strike specimen of the 1866 date has been graded or is believed to exist.
A 1906 Liberty Double Eagle, PR65 PCGS CAC finished at $174,000. According to the 2025 Guide Book, the Philadelphia Mint struck just 94 proof Liberty double eagles in 1906, to accompany a small business-strike mintage of 69,596 pieces. PCGS CoinFacts estimates the surviving population at 50 to 60 specimens in all grades, while Dannreuther estimates a similar total of 50 to 65 examples still extant.
A 1795 Small Eagle Five, MS62 PCGS CAC drew a winning bid of $156,000. Two of the Bass-Dannreuther 12 listed varieties, the BD-6 (including this example) and the BD-5, catch immediate attention through engraver errors – in this case, the the final “S” in “STATES” on the reverse is punched over an erroneous “D.”
Other top lots included, but are not limited to:
An 1884-S Morgan Dollar, MS64 PCGS: $120,000
An 1886-O Morgan Dollar, MS65 PCGS: $120,000
An 1879 Flowing Hair Stella, Judd-1635, PR62 PCGS: $120,000
A rare Chapman Proof of a 1921 Morgan Dollar, PR65: $114,000
An 1879 Flowing Hair Stella, Judd-1635, PR58+ NGC: $108,240
About Heritage Auctions
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