Billionaire buys Seated Liberty dollar collection

A billionaire has purchased a set of Seated Liberty silver dollars with the help of David Lawrence Rare Coins.

The Virginia Beach, Va., numismatic firm announced Feb. 13 that it had acquired the set on behalf of a partner, Dell Loy Hansen.

Price was undisclosed.

Called the Hall of Fame Collection, the Seated dollar set had been assembled by Bruce Morelan through Legend Numismatics.

Legend was going to auction the set in May, but when rumor suggested that a world class collection was to be auctioned, John Brush, DLRC president, said he inquired about the coins.

DLRC and Dell Loy Hansen jumped on the opportunity, and the negotiations with Laura Sperber of Legend Numismatics took only a few hours.

“This is simply a group of coins that should not exist. The quality of each of the Seated dollars is absolutely impeccable, and every single coin was hand-picked for not only condition, but ultimate quality,” said Brush.

“We acted quickly as we view this as one of the few collections that simply should not be broken apart if at all possible. The sum of all its pieces are so much greater than the individuals,” Brush said.

“When I notified Mr. Hansen about it, he thought that it was an excellent opportunity and one that we should pursue immediately.”

Emotions were strong on the part of the seller, Laura Sperber said.

“I am sad to see the set go, as I have enjoyed exclusively building it for 15 years. It was certainly a highlight of my career.

“With what Dell Loy is trying to accomplish, this monster Hall of Fame set is a perfect fit for his collection. I am thrilled to see it placed with him instead of being broken up,” Sperber said.

Perhaps the best part of this deal for numismatics in general is that average collectors will gain access to it.

“I know he cherishes it and will allow it to be displayed to treat the current and future collecting public,” Sperber said.

Currently, it can be seen as a Professional Coin Grading Service Registry Set at D.L. Hansen Liberty Seated Dollar Set.

DLRC notes that of particular interest are the 1851 and 1852 dollars.

The 1851 is graded by PCGS as MS-65 and was once part of the legendary Norweb Collection.

The 1852 is similarly graded by PCGS and is simply an amazing example of this key date.

In the set are coins from the Garrett, Share, Childs, Fairfield, Stack, Hayes, Amon Carter and Knoxville Collections.

Now Hansen has put his name on the provenance. He is a Utah real estate developer. who has been very active in the coin market for almost two years.

Most of these words are not my own, but as with the Seated dollar set, you can’t improve on top quality.

Thanks for the information David Lawrence Rare Coins.

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