Regency Auction 38 Brings Strong Results Despite Relocation

Legend Rare Coins' Regency Auction 38, set to take place at Harrah’s in New Orleans as part of the PCGS Members Only Show, was forced to become a webcast event held at Legend’s central New Jersey offices due to the ongoing coronavirus global pandemic of 2020.

Despite this change, results in prices were strong, showing continued resilience in the coin market. From the start of the sale, which began with the Blue Hill Collection of New Orleans Silver Dollars and Double Eagles, activity was strong. Even before the sale opened for live bidding on the evening of Thursday, May 14, there was a record number of registrants for a sale of this size, (it was a smaller sale featuring just over 300 lots).

The New Orleans silver dollars had such strength that it seems the dollar market might be recovering from the downturn in prices over the last six months, only time will tell. From the first lot, bidding was quite active. Though the 54-O and 56-O did not make their reserves, the other coins saw active bidding, including the 79-O in particular, which brought a very strong bid from a very happy collector and realized $82,250. Walking Liberty half dollars have again proven to be one of the strongest series right now, with high-grade examples and esoteric varieties seeing a large number of bidders vying to add coins to their sets. The top price realized for the sale, a 1909-O half eagle, graded PCGS MS-63 CA,C realized $114,563. (All prices reported include the 17.5 percent buyers premium.)

“Interest in this sale started strong and remained that way throughout the close of the sale, as registrations and activity were high throughout the entire presale bidding and live bidding process,” said Matthew Bell, CEO of Legend Auctions. “We actually noticed a marked increase in people planning to follow the sale live, as we fielded seemingly non-stop phone calls... from customers eagerly anticipating the live auction Thursday night.”

“The sale started off extremely strong,” echoed Laura Sperber, Founder of LRCA. “The Blue Hill silver dollars were already realizing strong prices after pre-bidding, and many saw those prices increase further during the live auction. We could not be happier with those results and hope that they foreshadow renewed strength in the dollar market overall. Congratulations to the Blue Hill collector and all the new owners on an amazing night!”

Other highlights of the Blue Hill Collection include:

Lot 2. $1 1850-O graded PCGS MS-63 CAC, realized $30,550

Lot 40. $20 1855-O graded PCGS XF-45+ CAC, realized $42,300

Lot 43. $20 1858-O graded PCGS AU-55 Ex Eliasberg, realized $29,375

Lot 47 $20 1879-O graded PCGS AU-53 CAC, realized $82,250

The other anchor collection offered in Regency Auction 38 was the Ogden Avenue Ladies Collection of Proof Liberty Nickels, which ranked #3 on the PCGS Set Registry. These pieces saw very active bidding. The third major collection of Proof Liberty nickels LRCA has sold in the last 12 months, the market warmly welcomed the coins, and they brought generally healthy prices across the board.

Highlights of the Ogden Avenue Ladies Collection, include:

Lot 70. 5C 1883 With Cents graded PCGS PR-67+ CAM CAC, realized $9,988

Lot 88. 5C 1901 graded PCGS PR-67+ CAM CAC, realized $4,700

Lot 93. 5C 1906 graded PCGS PR-67 CAM CAC, realized $4,348

Lot 99. 5C 1912 graded PCGS PR-67 CAM CAC, realized $8,519

Other highlights include:

Lot 51. 1C 1865 Fancy 5. graded PCGS MS-66+ RD CAC, realized $17,038

Lot 109. 5C 1918/7-D graded PCGS MS-64+ CAC, realized $99,875

Lot 113. 5C 1925-D graded PCGS MS-66+ CAC, realized $34,075

Lot 136. 20C 1875-CC graded PCGS MS-65+ CAC, realized $21,738

Lot 169. 50C 1859-S graded PCGS MS-65 CAC, realized $8,813

Lot 178. 50C 1918-S graded PCGS MS-65 CAC, realized $30,550

Lot 185. 50C 1929-D graded PCGS MS-67 CAC, realized $64,625

Lot 222. $1 1871-CC graded PCGS XF-45, realized $17,038

Lot 240. $1 1881-S graded PCGS MS-65 CAC, realized $6,756

Lot 251. $1 1887 graded PCGS MS-65 DMPL CAC, realized $2,468

Lot 286. $5 1909-O graded PCGS MS-63 CAC, realized $114,563

Legend Rare Coin Auctions’ next auction is being held on Thursday, July 16, 2020, in a sale slated to be held in Las Vegas as the official auction of the PCGS Members Only Show. Featuring the BigMo Civil War Collection, the Incline Collection of Jefferson Nickels, and the Roadrunner Collection of Toned Dollars, part 1, Regency Auction 39 is open for consignments until June 1. For more information about consigning, call 732-935-1168 or email info@legendauctions.com.