Commems Collection Classic: Louis Bassano Collection Auction

As a student of the history of the coins and medals I collect, I have long enjoyed adding auction catalogs of outstanding commemorative coin collections to my library. My focus is on catalogs of a single collector's collection, not catalogs that present a group of commemorative coins from multiple consignors - I like to view the end result of a single collector's efforts! To that end, I thought I'd present an auction of a particularly nice collection of classic silver commemoratives - they are a "feast for the eyes!"

Who is Louis Bassano? Charles Louis Bassano is a former New Jersey Senator (1982-2001) and Assemblyman (1972-1982); his party affiliation was Republican. He began collecting coins as a kid by going through circulation change with his father and filling coin albums. He continued his interest in coins into adulthood, and pursued high-grade sets of Mercury dimes and US classic silver commemoratives. He enjoyed history, and, in his own words, stated his particular interest in US commemorative coins: "no series captures American history like the classic silver commemoratives."

Back in 2009, Heritage Auctions offered the Louis Bassano Collection of US Commemoratives as part of its July-August auction held in Los Angeles, CA - it was Session 3 of the auction. It was the second time Heritage had
auctioned coins from Bassano; in 2000, it had auctioned his outstanding collection of Mercuty Dimes, all of which were Full Split Band examples in MS-65 or better.

The overall auction included over 400 lots of US commemorative coins, but the truly special coins of this group were the coins that had been part of Louis Basano's collection. In fact, the quality of his coins was such that his commemoratives merited a separate catalog from that of the core auction. The 24-page coin section of the standalone catalog included color images of every coin in Bassano's complete 144-piece set.

It included 33 coins in "lowly" MS-66, 89 coins in MS-67 and 22 superlative coins in MS-68. The simple average grade of the collection was 66.9! If you are wondering about how the collection would do in the PCGS Registry, its score would be 66.835 not including any "Pop Top" bonuses (which it would earn); also, the coins in the collection were graded/encapsulated before the "+" era and so none of the coins have such a grade extension and bonus (even though many would likely qualify).

One of the early highlights of the auction was a colorful 1900 Lafayette dollar in PCGS MS-67 with green CAC sticker. The coin sold to a floor bidder for $77,625.00 including the 15% buyer's premium. Though quite an amazing price, it is actually about 10% less than it sold for just over a year earlier. At the April 2008 Central States Numismatic Society (CSNS) auction that was conducted by Heritage, the same coin sold for $86,250.00 including its 15% buyer's premium.

But the Lafayette is just one of the many highlights, here is a handful from the collection - Enjoy!

1. 1893 Isabella Quarter, PCGS MS-67, $8,625 View it here.

2. 1900 Lafayette Dollar, PCGS MS-67, $77,625 View it here.

3. 1937 Antietam Half Dollar, PCGS MS-68, $9,776 View it here.

4. 1925 California, PCGS MS-68, $17,250 View it here.

5. 1893 Columbian, PCGS MS-67, $12,650 View it here.

6. 1926-S Oregon Trail, PCGS MS-68 View it here.

Here is an image of the cover of the auction catalog in case you want to search for one, but all of the coins in the sale can easily be viewed on http://www.ha.com. Just type "Bassano commemoratives" in the search box, click on the "View Past Sale Prices" tab and get ready to explore a truly terrific collection of high-end classic-era silver commemorative coins.