Bassano's Dimes Realize 274% of Bluesheet in Heritage's Philadelphia 2000 Signature Sale™

Dallas, Texas: Heritage's Philadelphia 2000 Signature Sale, conducted August 6-7, realized a significant $4.6 million, but the attention of every numismatist in Philadelphia was riveted upon the $741,155 realized by their anchor consignment: a complete set of gem Mercury dimes assembled by Senator Louis Bassano. "Our staff, as well as our faithful bidders, predicted a strong auction performance," stated Bob Korver, Heritage's Director of Auctions. "No amount of anticipation, however, could have prepared us for either the total prices realized or the ease with which certain coins shattered previous numismatic records - and no part of the sale produced greater or happier surprises than Senator Bassano's Mercury Dimes. " Wearing a very broad smile after the sale, Senator Bassano summarized the activity with: "The prices Heritage realized were simply unbelievable."

Senator Bassano's Collection of Mercury Dimes realized an astonishing $741,155, yielding 274% of the bid price listed in the Certified Coin Dealer Newsletter (commonly referred to as the "Bluesheet"). "Senator Bassano," continued Korver, "chased coins of the highest quality for several decades; in fact, it is fair to say that his collection was in a constant state of upgrade whenever a finer specimen could be obtained. Anyone who questions the benefit of paying premium prices to obtain premium specimens needs only look at the results of this sale. Further evidence of Senator's Bassano's discerning 'eye' can be found in his five gems graded so high that they are off the Bluesheet charts!"

The single highest price realized came from Bassano's 1919-D dime, certified by PCGS as MS 66 Full Bands, which became an object of fixation for two advanced collectors. "The auction room was a flurry of activity during the bidding for Senator Bassano's 1919-D dime," noted Bassano cataloguer Jeff Ambio. "Bidding started at $30,000, just below the $32,000 Bluesheet bid. Within seconds, the increments had astonishingly passed double Bluesheet. As auctioneer Bob Merrill called out each subsequent increment, every head in the room was turning back and forth with increased anticipation. One of the bidders had leaped to her feet with excitement; while her unseen opponent bid with the merest tick of his pen. As the price continued to soar, every eye in the room tried unsuccessfully to spot the second bidder. The eventual winner at $190,000 ($218,500 including the buyer's premium), who wishes to remain anonymous, displayed some of the most masterful bidding that I have ever seen at a Heritage auction. I might also add that I was flushed with excitement at witnessing the sale of the coins that I had the pleasure of cataloging months earlier - and then to see them bring such fabulous prices! I know that Heritage's expert cataloging and superb photography are integral to maximizing the prices realized, but there is no doubt in my mind that Senator Bassano's dimes were the real star of this bidding frenzy. And with no coin graded less than MS 65 Full Bands, how could it be otherwise? Forty-two of Senator Bassano's dimes sold for more than double bid! What a tribute to this fine collector."

Senator Bassano was just as impressed. "From the first lot, my 1916 dime, bidding was incredibly strong, and it just kept getting stronger. As much as I loved my coins, it was a little hard to grasp that so many other bidders could have loved them even more. As the bidding climbed on the 1919-D, I felt overjoyed knowing that one of my prizes would be going to a new owner that loved it so much. I listened very carefully to the evaluation of my coins by the grading experts at Heritage, and then I followed their advice about resubmitting coins that they considered had the greatest upgrade potential. Jim Halperin, Greg Rohan, and Richard Melamed were all convinced that my 1919-D had upgrade potential; as beautiful as the coin was, I thought it was fully graded. Heritage was right, and the upgrades they achieved had a lot to do with the record prices achieved on Monday. Heritage sold my coins for double my most optimistic price that I had dreamed of - double! To say that I am pleased that I choose Heritage to sell my collection would be worthy of nomination for the "Understatement of the Year" award."

Concluded Korver, "While this was another world-record performance by America's Convention Auctioneer,™ it really is appropriate to thank the more than 1,000 bidders who participated, through our Internet website at http://www.HeritageCoin.com, through the mail, or in attendance on the floor; there is no successful sale without them. Additional thanks must go to the Heritage staff, whose fine cataloging, photography, and sale execution attracted the attention of the entire numismatic world and made their participation pleasurable. And final thanks must go to Louis Bassano, the numismatist and gentleman whose vision and dedicated efforts resulted in the formation of this world class collection!