Rare coins: For as long as we can trace, certain coins have risen above being just money to become legendary relics that continue to enthral collectors and scholars both.
The value of these numismatic treasures is due to a combination of historical significance, rarity, stories, and preservation. Here are five classic coins that have become legend in the coin collecting world.
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Rare coins: The Flowing Hair Dollar (1794-1795)- America’s First Silver Dollar
The Flowing Hair dollar was the first dollar coin issued by the United States federal government. The design, by Robert Scot, was similar to that of the then new half cent and cent :
the obverse depicted a bust of Liberty with flowing hair, while the reverse showed an eagle, which is perched on an olive branch and grasping arrows, and encircled by a wreath.
Of these early dollars, some 160,000 were struck for the two years combined, and they continue to offer collectors a physical glimpse of the nation’s moneyed start.
The most famous one, what is believed to be the very first silver dollar minted by the United States Mint, sold for $10 million in 2013, making it one of the most valuable coins ever sold at auction.
The quality of this piece is so high that it makes it possible that it was produced specifically as a presentation piece — for a government official or visiting foreign dignitary, for example.
Even examples in well-circulated condition continue to bring this lofty six-figure price point, which is indicative of their large role in America’s money-making past.
The Double Eagle (1933): The Coin That Could Not Be Owned
Few coins tell the tale of American economic history as dramatically as the 1933 Double Eagle. They were not officially released, none of the 445,500 issued were ever officially released with private citizens and foreigners forbidden to own more than $100 in gold.
Most of the examples were later melted, but a few somehow avoided the melting pot, leading to one of the most intriguing legal battles in numismatics.
The government treated the coins as stolen decades ago and sought to reclaim them with great gusto.
Through an involved legal agreement one of them was monetized and legally auctioned off in 2002 for $7,590,014. In 2021, a second example sold for $18.9 million, setting a new auction record for an American coin.
The coin’s legendary status is also a result of the great rarity of the issue, its art deco beauty in the design by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and the dramatic story behind the coin.
The Brasher Doubloon (1787) : First Gold Coin in the U.S.
Rare coins- Prior to the founding of a federal mint, the New York goldsmith Ephraim Brasher, who lived near George Washington, minted gold coins that were used with the foreign pieces that early Americans used.
His “doubloons” which were a round disc with about $15 in gold (as it’s worth now) had a rising sun on one side and his typical “EB” mark and were a symbol of hope.
There are only seven Brasher Doubloons known to exist. The most famous of those, with Brasher’s punch mark on the eagle’s breast rather than its wing, sold in 2011 for almost $7.4 million.
These coins are a fascinating segment of American numismatic history of a pivotal time before the government took over coinage in the United States, where private entrepreneurs took over in the void of a public mint during the early days of the new republic.
The British Edward VIII Gold Sovereign (1937): The Coin That Never Existed
Rare coins- When King Edward VIII abdicated the throne of England in December 1936, after his decision to marry Wallis Simpson, a small number of pattern coins with his portrait were already struck in anticipation of his reign. Of these, the gold sovereign patterns are of particular importance; only a few pieces are known.
What’s so special about these extraordinary coins is that they depict a reign which in reality never happened — a brief freeze frame from a parallel historical dimension.
The Edward VIII sovereign has an unusual attribute in that, unlike all other British monarchs (who had traditionally faced in the opposite direction to their predecessor), Edward insisted on facing left – showing his preferred side, the left profile (and actually his better side), thus breaking a practice going back centuries.
One of these pattern sovereigns was sold privately in September 2021 for £1,000,000 and it is one of the most valuable British coins.
Their rarity, historical importance and association with one of the most high-profile royal scandals of the 20th century help account for their continued significance.
Rare coins: The Umayyad Gold Dinar (723 AD) The Mine of the Commander of the Believers
Among the most valuable of all coin rarities in history are the Umayyad gold dinar struck at the “Mine of the Commander of the Faithful.”
This pocket piece was minted during the rule of caliph Yazid II and bears an inscription recording it is struck from gold removed from the Caliph’s own land in what is the first Islamic coin to include a mention of the actual location of the gold source itself.
The historical value of this coin goes far beyond the rarity of what it is we are holding in our hand. It is of major significance by the historical standards of the Islamic monetary system and reflects the sophisticated approach of the Caliphate to natural resources.
When an example was offered at auction in 2019, it brought £3.7 million (about $4.8 million), making it one of the most valuable coins of the Islamic world.
The five coins below are perfect examples showing how a few pieces of money go way beyond their initial function as currency and turn into cultural artifacts of great historical and wherever relevant, financial value.
And each has its own interesting story about the civilization that created it—either intentionally, by historical accident, or at the (literal) crossroads of political drama and money production.
Aesthetic, historical and ultra-rarities The coins are a true combination of artistry with historical importance and near-impossible rarity on every level.
