Unique, Spectacular 1859 "Six Cents" Mint Mistake, Made in 1857 and 1859, Will be Featured in Heritage's 2007 F.U.N. Auction in Orlando

An Amazing Error Coin Produced Nearly 150 Years Ago

DALLAS, TX: A spectacular and unique mistake made by the United States Mint in Philadelphia in 1859 - a coin that is an 1859 cent on one side and an 1857 five cents on the other - will be auctioned by Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas at their January 3-6, 2007 official auction of the Florida United Numismatists convention. Heritage's official auctions at F.U.N., being held at the Orange County Convention facility in Orlando, will total more than $50 million of rare coins and currencies. Many lot descriptions and full-color, enlargeable images can now be viewed online at HA.com as the catalog is prepared; the catalog will be officially posted and open for bidding in mid-December.

"This is a tale of two coins," reflected Heritage President Greg Rohan, "and what survived to tell us about it is a silver coin, with the obverse of an 1859 cent combined with the reverse of an 1857 five-cent piece, known at the time as a half dime. Over the last century and a half there has been no rumor of any similar example. Given the evidence on the coin itself, there is only one possible explanation of its manufacture. A half dime struck in 1857 somehow found its way into a press producing cents in 1859. During the coinage process, this half dime was fed into the press on top of a blank cent planchet, and the 'sandwiched' two pieces were struck together by the dies above and below them. The result was the half dime's obverse now overstruck with the Indian cent obverse impression, while the reverse of the half dime was slightly flattened against the blank cent planchet under the tons of minting pressure. The details of the half dime's obverse, including the 1857 date, are still visible despite the enormous pressure exerted on them by the Mint's press."

"If you think about the process for a moment," continued Rohan, "you will realize that a second error was produced at the same time! During this same striking, an Indian cent with a half dime sized indent on its front was also created, although no evidence exists that it emerged from the mint or that it has survived."

Concluded Rohan: "While this unique error has long been listed in reference books (by Hewitt Judd, Edgar H. Adams and William H. Woodin, Don Taxay, and Andrew Pollock, it has only appeared for auction on three different occasions over 150 years: the June 1890 sale of the Lorin G. Parmelee Collection by New York Coin & Stamp Co. (where it was listed as a Pattern); the February 1974 sale of the Dr. Charles Ruby Collection by Superior Stamp and Coin Co. (described as an extraordinary mint error); and in the April 1986 sale of The Collection of Stuart C. Levine, M.D. (listed as a half dime error). This is a most illustrious pedigree, and suggests spirited bidding in the fourth public appearance of this dual-denomination error representing a first-year of issue design and a single-year type coin!"

Anchor consignments to be auctioned at F.U.N. include: Dr. Robert Loewinger's Collection of Proof Gold Rarities; William Luebke's Collection of Bust Dollars; Troy Wiseman Collection of Colonial Coins; The Jones Beach Collection of Patterns and Type; The Essex Palm Collection Of Early Federal Coinage, The Freedom Collection, The Monedas Oro Collection, The Oak Island Collection, The Prinzi Trust Collection, The Temecula Collection, The James Paul Collection, and The Twin Hollows Collection.

For information about consigning to a future auction, call one of our Consignment Directors on our Hotline: 1-800-872-6467 ext. 222 (Coins) or ext. 555 (Currency).

Images, descriptions, and prices realized from all of Heritage's previous auctions are available in the Permanent Auction Archives at the Heritage website, www.HA.com.

To reserve a copy of the catalog for any upcoming Heritage auction, please contact Nicole Jewell, c/o Heritage Auction Galleries, 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th Floor, Dallas, TX 75219, or call 1-800-872-6467, ext. 272.