Numismatic Price Records Shattered

King of Siam Proof Set Brings $8.5 Million

History was made in the first week of November when a number of price records were shattered. The first of many was the sale of the King of Siam Proof Set, selling for an amazing $8.5 million. This legendary set is made up of 11 coins, which are: An 1833 gold Andrew Jackson medal PR63; 1834 Half Cent PR66RD; 1834 Coronet Cent PR66RD; 1834 Capped Bust Half-Dime PR66; 1834 Capped Bust Dime PR67; 1834 Capped Bust Quarter PR65; 1834 Capped Bust Half PR65; 1804 Draped Bust $1.00 Class I PR67; a 1834 Classic Head $5 PR65CA; and a 1804 Capped Bust $10 PR64CA.

The 1804 Class I Draped Bust is the finest known of eight examples which have been traced, and is certainly the most valuable of the 11 coins. A similar 1804 dollar set an auction price record in 1999 when it sold for $4.15 million. That record was shattered when the King Farouk specimen of the 1933 $20 St. Gaudens sold in 2002 for an amazing $7.59 million at a special auction . . . which was then eclipsed by the “Eureka Bar,” the largest of the monetary ingots recovered from the 1857 shipwreck of the S.S. Central America, which sold in early 2002 for $8,000,000.

The previous owner of the King of Siam set paid $4 million a few years ago and had been negotiating with the buyer for a few months. Being a client of mine, I spoke with the seller after the record sale and he is very pleased with the results and was happy to be a temporary custodian of the famous set.

The second record to be shattered was the finest of what are probably 20 to 24 specimens of the 1907 Ultra High Relief $20 St. Gaudens graded PR69. These beautiful works of art have long since been a collector’s favorite and when you examine one in person it easy to understand why. This near-perfect specimen sold for an impressive $2,990,000, considerably higher than the previous $1.15 million brought in 2003, and when the hammer came down, the room erupted in a round of applause.

But this was only the first time in a long evening of falling records that the applause would erupt. The coins that would join the “Hall of Fame” this evening are listed below:

Date Description Grade Realized

1927-D $20 St. Gaudens MS67 $1,897,500

1921 $20 St. Gaudens MS66 $1,092,500

1907 $20 St. Gaudens PR68 $920,000

1921 $20 St. Gaudens MS65 $805,000

1884 Trade $1 PR65 $603,750

1907 $20 High Relief MS69 $575,000

1907 $20 High Relief PR69 $534,750