The June 22 sale at Burchard Galleries, Inc in St. Petersburg, FL featured inventory from the Daytona Museum of Arts and Sciences, the JP Morgan Collection and two mid Florida estates.

The top coin lot and the top lot of the sale was a 1905 Lewis and Clark gold $1 graded from PCGS as MS64. These coins graded better than MS62 are very rare. 35,041 of the commemorative coins were struck at the Philadelphia mint in 1905. The odd 41 were for mint inspection services. Of the remaining 35,000 only 10,000 were actually sold to the public for the market price of $3. The unsold balance was melted for gold stock. The coins were not perceived as being especially valuable when issued and few were stored carefully with many being melted in the Depression for scrap. Auction spokesman Todd Burchard pointed out that the coins were graded MS64 some time ago under a more stringent grading system than that in use today. He expects the coins to be regraded to a higher mark.

This MS64 Lewis and Clark had a presale estimate of $1,500/2,000. Crossing the block late in the sale the lot drew a surprising 17 bids. The winner was a local collector/dealer in the room who bid $14,000 before the buyer’s premium. A 1904 Lewis and Clark gold $1 with a similar grade, estimated at $1,000/1,500, had a hammer price of $7,250 and a Panama Pacific 1915-S $2½ gold piece, graded from PCGS MS64, brought $5,750 against the $1,500/2,500 estimate.

Other good gold included a 1913 $5 Gold Half Eagle, graded MS64, selling five times the high estimate at $5,000 and a 1932 $10 Indian Gold Eagle, MS64, hammering at double the estimate to close at $4,000.

The sale was carried live online by LiveAuctioneers.com and had 363 registered bidders from around the world including Israel, Australia, Italy and France. Burchard Galleries, Inc. owner Jeff Burchard and his son Todd called the eight hour sale. For more information call (727) 821-1167, email to mail@burchardgalleries.com or visit the website at www.burchardgalleries.com. The Gallery is located at 2528 30th Avenue North, St. Petersburg, Florida 33713. Burchard Galleries normally has an auction the last weekend each month with a “discovery auction” on Saturday and an antiques sale on Sunday. Check the website for details.
Written by:
Fred Taylor
www.furnituredetective.com
800-387-6377

PHOTO CAPTION FOR BURCHARD GALLERIES
Lewis - 1905 LEWIS & CLARK $1 GOLD PCGS MS64: Graded from PCGS MS64 sold for $14,000. Est $1500/2000

Posted: 07|14|08 at 10:48 am. Filed under: US News.