World Record Set for Coin Collectors as a 1652 Massachusetts Silver Threepence Sells for $2.52 Million

This astonishing sale has captured the attention of coin collectors worldwide, as the price surpassed the previous world record price of $646,250 for an American coin struck before the American Revolution. The threepence also set a record for any non-gold US coin struck before the founding of the United States Mint.

Struck within weeks of the establishment of the first mint to be opened in the future United States, the New England threepence is the only example known outside of a museum. A holed specimen has been in the collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society for 120 years. Since that time, no individual coin collector has had the chance to own an example, making this auction a rare and historic opportunity. In the auction, Several passionate coin collectors engaged in a 12-minute bidding battle for this once-in-several-lifetimes chance to acquire the piece.

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New England Coins of the 1600s

Of the simple New England coins of 1652 struck in the Boston mint, the threepence is by far the rarest. This piece, featuring just a tiny ‘NE’ for New England, was discovered in an old cabinet in Amsterdam around 2016 and belied identification for several years before the owner decided to thoroughly research his find. The 1.1g coin is thought to have come from the Quincy family of Boston, a political dynasty that included Abigail Adams, whose husband John was ambassador to the Netherlands in the 1770s and 1780s. The next day, in the Stack’s Bowers rarities night on 19 November, an 1850 Baldwin & Co. $10 ‘Horseman’ realised $1,260,000, more than three times the previous record of $381,875 for this type of coin, which was set in August 2014, captivating coin collectors.

With a face value of $10, the coin was struck by the banking firm of Baldwin & Co. in San Francisco during the height of the California Gold Rush. The coin’s inscriptions ‘CALIFORNIA GOLD’ and ‘TEN DOLLARS’ surround a detailed image of a cowboy on horseback with his lasso aloft and ready to throw. Following the abundance of gold found in California’s gold fields in 1849 and 1850, private companies like Baldwin & Co. bought gold from miners and created private gold coins that circulated alongside regular United States coins, as well as coins brought by new arrivals from countries around the world. Just 20 or so Baldwin & Co. Horseman $10 gold are thought to exist. 

If you’re an avid coin collector, Collect Modern Coins is the ultimate guide for anyone passionate about commemorative coins, including popular favorites like the Peter Rabbit, Paddington, and 2012 Olympics 50p coins.