PCGS - PCGS recently graded the only privately held 1652 New England Threepence, the rarest American colonial coin known. PCGS graded the specimen XF45 after its recent discovery, making it only the second extant example. The other example is in the custody of the Massachusetts Historical Society; another specimen was discovered to be missing from Yale University's Collection close to a century ago and has not been accounted for since.
"This is one of the most important coins in American numismatics," says PCGS President Stephanie Sabin. "Since before the Civil War, collectors have regarded the 1652 New England Threepence as the single-rarest American colonial coin. And for more than a century it's been known as entirely unobtainable for private collectors. The discovery of this outstanding specimen, tracing back to Boston's historic Quincy family, means this national treasure is available for ownership by private numismatists for the first time in generations," Sabin adds. "It was an honor to grade this coin, protecting it for future generations before it heads to auction this autumn."
Stack's Bowers Galleries will offer the 1652 New England Threepence graded PCGS XF45 in November 2024. The sale of this unparalleled rarity is expected to drum up incredible interest in the numismatic community and beyond. Stack's Bowers Galleries Director of Numismatic Americana John Kraljevich remarks, "For the entire lifetime of every collector alive today, the New England Threepence has been entirely non-collectible, with not a single specimen in private hands anywhere in the world." He says, "This specimen, now the finer of two extant, is the most important colonial numismatic treasure to be discovered in a century or more. What could be more desirable than a one-of-a-kind rarity from the very first issue to be struck in North America?"
The last time a 1652 New England Threepence resided in private numismatic hands was in the early 1900s. That's when Boston scholar William Sumner Appleton owned the specimen that went to the Massachusetts Historical Society after his passing in 1903. No collector alive today has had the opportunity to purchase a 1652 New England Threepence, making the encapsulation and sale of this recently discovered specimen all the more remarkable.
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Posted 08/31/2024 08:52 am
