The San Francisco Collection of Classic Commemoratives at the 2010 FUN Sale

In late November 2009, I posted a thread that discussed the state of the rainbow toned coin market based upon the journey of a single common date toned Morgan Dollar that sold 4 separate times in two years. While the discussion was interesting, the state of the toned coin market was left mired in doubt. Doubt about one coin defining the market. Doubt about the coin being sold on E-Bay instead of a sight seen auction like a Heritage signature sale. Doubt about whether paying premiums for toning is a fad or a fact of life.

http://www.cointalk.com/t80897/

In the recent 2010 FUN signature sale, an incredible (yet small) collection of rainbow toned classic commemoratives was sold. The collection consisted of a dozen certified toned coins. Ten of these coins sold and two remain as post auction buys. I would like to chronicle each of the coins that sold adding my comments regarding each coin.

http://coins.ha.com/common/search_results.php?N=51+790+231+4294950609


1937 50C Antietam MS66 PCGS Sold for: $1,150.00 (includes BP )


Description 1937 50C Antietam MS66 PCGS. Plum, claret, silver-tan, and pale pearl-gray shadings converge on this breathtaking Premium Gem. Delightful luster and a solid strike complete the eye appeal.
Toning Premium: 1.2X Wholesale
Comments: One of three toned Antietam's in the collection with a remarkable toning pattern that surrounds and seems to frame the conjoined busts of the civil war generals. Only the fact that I own an equally impressive toned Antietam kept me from bidding.



1937 Antietam Half, MS67 * Sold for: $4,025.00 (includes BP )



Description1937 50C Antietam MS67 * NGC. Medium intensity multicolored toning concentrates at the margins of this lovely commemorative framing the nearly color free central areas. A decisive strike imparts strong definition to the design elements. A few minuscule marks subtract nothing from the coin's incredible eye appeal. Comes with vintage mailing envelope, sent to a bank in Michigan, which contains an official cardboard holder for five Antietam halves. Census: 7 in 67 *, 6 finer (12/09).
Toning Premium: 3.5X Wholesale
Comments: I can only recall one other Antietam with more impressive toning than this coin. The Antietam is commonly found with beautiful toning. To be considered at the top of the toning class for this commemorative issue is an honor, even if only bestowed by me.



1936 50C Cleveland MS66 * NGC Sold for: $2,990.00 (includes BP)



Description 1936 50C Cleveland MS66 * NGC. Sumptuous claret and canary-gold peripheral hues give way to ice-blue and silver-pink shadings close to the centers. A fantastic Premium Gem for the toning fanatic.
Toning Premium: 9.3X Wholesale
Comments: Personally I find the design of the Cleveland commemorative to be rather sub par. However, to make this design this attractive with toning is a major feat. A huge premium was paid for this coin and one which I would not endorse as my bid was only $1,000.


1936 50C Delaware MS65 PCGS Sold for: $2,127.50 (includes BP )



Description 1936 50C Delaware MS65 PCGS. Both sides of this lustrous Gem offer impressive toning. Light gray-gold centers give way to sky-blue and lemon-yellow margins on the obverse, while the reverse shows richer orange, lime, blue-violet, and rose shadings.
Toning Premium: 6.4X Wholesale
Comments: While I didn't bid on this coin, one needs to recognize that the Delaware is a very difficult commemorative to find with appreciable attractive rainbow toning. The toning on this coin does not fall in the monster category but just try to find a finer patinated Delaware.




1922 50C Grant No Star MS64 NGC Sold for: $2,300.00 (includes BP )



Description 1922 50C Grant No Star MS64 * NGC. Blue-green, plum, and gold peripheral shadings frame ethereal silver-gray centers. A gorgeous near-Gem with wonderful luster.
Toning Premium: 10.7X Wholesale
Comments: Besides the fact that the label is comical (No Star MS64 *), the coin is incredible. This coin defines how grade can be unimportant when dealing with toned coins. Without the toning, it is a run of the mill MS64. Donning the patina allows the coin to mingle with upper class MS67's.



1924 50C Huguenot MS66 NGC Sold for: $6,325.00 (includes BP )



Description 1924 50C Huguenot MS66 NGC. Rose, violet, green-gold, and pale ice-blue shadings embrace the obverse of this exquisite Premium Gem, while the reverse adds deeper plum, cerulean, and lime elements. Impressively lustrous with just a few shallow marks hidden in the reverse devices.
Toning Premium: 9.2X Wholesale
Comments: I could list a long string of superlatives to describe this coin but I don't need to. Simply look at the photo. I feel the need to caution the readers of this thread. While I find it acceptable to take risks bidding on toned coins via photos, I highly recommend that you do not follow my lead. Bidding 5-10X wholesale on a $100+ coin is risky business and something that should been done sight seen.




1920 50C Maine MS66 NGC. Sold for: $4,312.50 (includes BP )



Description: 1920 50C Maine MS66 NGC. Stunningly toned with beautiful luster filtering through the rings of gold, sea-green, cerulean, and magenta-violet gracing each side. A well struck with such triumphant eye appeal that the planchet flaw just above the knot of the wreath seems trivial. NGC has graded 23 numerically finer examples (11/09).
Toning Premium: 7.2X Wholesale
Comments: The total population of this coin in MS66 is 594/40. To find one as attractive as this example probably reduces the population to this 2/0. It is the finest toned Maine commem I have ever seen.



1937 50C Roanoke MS68 NGC Sold for: $10,925.00 (includes BP )



Description: 1937 50C Roanoke MS68 NGC. An exquisite Superb Gem, housed reverse-up to better display the peach, blue, and gold-green tab toning on that side. The beautifully lustrous obverse shares similar hues. Strongly struck and essentially unmarked, tied for numerically finest known to NGC or PCGS (11/09).
Toning Premium: 3.1X Wholesale
Comments: I feel almost embarrassed that I bid $5K on this coin, but remember I did not see the coin in hand. With a few days left in the auction, my bid appeared to very competitive indeed. I am very grateful that I did not watch the floor bidding for this coin to watch my bid get absolutely obliterated.




1926 50C Sesquicentennial MS64 PCGS Sold for: $2,990.00 (includes BP )



Description 1926 50C Sesquicentennial MS64 PCGS. Green-gold, blue, and silver-gray elements drape each side of this near-Gem, while the obverse adds peripheral magenta. Only a few light ticks and the usual striking softness preclude a finer designation.
Toning Premium: 10.7X Wholesale
Comments: The Sesqui is very commonly found with deep original toning. The problem is that the toning is usually very dark and quite ugly. The fact that this coin drove the highest premium in this group of coins shoud tell you something about the rarity of the attractiveness of the toning on this coin.




1925 50C Stone Mountain MS67 NGC Sold for: $13,800.00 (includes BP )



Description 1925 50C Stone Mountain MS67 NGC. It is difficult to imagine a more beautiful Stone Mountain half than this stunningly toned Superb Gem. Plum, blue, lime, squash-gold, and magenta-rose hues dominate the lustrous surfaces. Carefully preserved beneath the patina and ell-defined. NGC has graded only 10 numerically finer examples (11/09).
Toning Premium: 12X Wholesale
Comments: The Stone Mountain in MS67 has a Numismedia Wholesale value of $1,150. Witnessing a coin with a wholesale value over $1K sell for over 10X wholesale is like seeing a double eagle in golf. I only wish I was at the FUN show to be able to see this coin in person.










I know this was a long thread, but the quality of these coins is astounding. It would have been nice to win just one of these coins. It should also mean something that not only did I get outbid on all three coins I bid on, my bids were outbid in multiples. The only thing more incredible was the overall toning premium realized by the collection.

Total Numismedia Wholesale Value: $9,155
Total Price Realized (including BP): $50,945
Total Toning Premium: 5.6X Wholesale

The performance of this collection indicates to me that the state of the toned coin market is doing just fine. Prices for more common material may be lagging like every other area of numismatics, but the high end toned material with exceptional eye appeal remains very strong indeed.

I would love to hear any thoughts or opinions on the subject.

 

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Beautiful presentation with intelligent insightful observations.

My favorite is the Roanoke MS68*. The Grant No Star MS64* is equally as nice.

Heck, they are all beautiful!

 

All beautiful coins :thumb:.

One thing I found interesting:

I was watching some of the live bidding for some of the Morgan auctions. From what I saw the bidding seemed to be strongest with the toned ones. With the average Morgan auction there wasn't too much live bidding, but most of the toned coins seemed to have a lot of live bids.

 

If you want at least a piece of an explanation, toned coins do not photograph well. Most people buying would prefer to see them in hand. Seeing them in had means you are there so you bid live. Non-toned coins can be seen better (comparatively speaking) and also sell for less meaning that it is less important to see them in hand.

 

Another reason is that many dealers and collectors are unwilling to pay premiums for untoned coins. Many common untoned coins are already at wholesale bid level before the live auction starts which leaves no room for live auction bids. Toned coins often drive high premiums and spirited bidding can and does occur on the auction floor when multiple bidders have their eye on a toned coin.

 

Super coins and presentation. Very well written. Watched all of these and who say's Classic Commem's are dead.

:smile

 

Lehigh, Thank you for your wonderful Post Auction presentation. I usually watch the Auctions but neglected to for this auction.

I very much agree with the Warning that both you and Rim cautioned. While these are all exquisite specimens, there are two that I am personally attracted to, although second only to the Maine for obvious reasons.

The Cleveland and Huguenot . I can't recall seeing a Huguenot exhibiting the spectacular toning this piece presents. Coin in hand, I'll bet the photo does not adequately reflect the true beauty of this Commemorative.

Again, Thank you for taking your time to prepare this presentation and your proficient opinions are well received by this member.

 

Very nice report. Whenever I see NGC * coins in my town I have noticed that they drive a premium.

 

Usually coins with star designations drive a premium due to the exceptional eye appeal. The problem is that there are many levels of eye appeal and no matter how impressive the coin may be, it can only get one star. Personally, I think the star designation would be much more useful if they employed a 3 star system. There are 3 graders that view each coin, I would like to know each one's opinion regarding the eye appeal. If only one of the graders thought the coin had exceptional eye appeal, it would get one star on the label. If the star designation was unanimous, it would get three stars.

To illustrate my point, I would like to post 3 different NGC star coins that obviously have different levels of eye appeal.




This coin is very attractive, but by no means is it a monster and I could very easily see this coin not getting a star if re-submitted under the current star designation guidelines. This coin was part of a submission of a roll of very lustrous premium gem 1943-D war nickels with similar toning. All of the coins I have seen with this submission number have a star designation. I am not claiming foul play, but I think the decision to star the coins was influenced by the quality of the group. This is the type of coin that I could see one of three graders assigning a star.




Another extremely attractive coin and IMO deserving of a star designation. However, due to the streaky peculiar look of the coin, I would completely understand if one of the graders decided not to award this coin a star designation. This is an example of a two star coin.




This is the no brainer! Monster color and phenomenal eye appeal. This coin would merit a star from every grader 100% of the time, a guaranteed 3 star coin.


If NGC were to employ a multiple star designation system, I believe that it would give the consumer a much more accurate professional opinion of the actual eye appeal of the coin. It may also assist buyers in determining how much of a premium to pay for the coins. Most importantly, it would ensure that coins like these don't get snubbed.







Needless to say, every coin in the San Francisco collection is a 3 star coin.

 

I like the idea of a three star system, the only problem with it would be how would people know the difference between the old stars and the new 3 star system. It would be a good thing to suggest to NGC, or even PCGS, though.

 

I am really just kinda thinking out loud at this point, but one way to solve that problem would be to change the font style of the star. Another option would be to place shadows or outlines of all three stars on every slab and those earning the star would have them filled in.

 

Great OP, Paul. Would have loved to see the Grant No Star (this photo has to be hiding something as I can't see how it's a 64) and the Huguenot in hand. Stone Mountain also. One of these days, I am going to get around to collecting commemoratives as there are some great designs.

Don't like NGC's star system -- as I've said before, I think trying to disentangle eye appeal from the numerical grade is the wrong way to go. I understand, however, that star grading may make more sense in series with a lot of vivid toning such as Morgans.