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EUROPE: COMPLETE COLLECTION of 410 dated coins, complete for every year from 1500 to 1899

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / World Coins - Europe Start Price:15,000.00 USD Estimated At:22,000.00 - 28,000.00 USD
EUROPE: COMPLETE COLLECTION of 410 dated coins, complete for every year from 1500 to 1899
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EUROPE: COMPLETE COLLECTION of 410 dated coins, complete for every year from 1500 to 1899 -- a remarkable achievement; Ten of the dates have duplicate coins. The collection consists primarily of European states and countries, with about 10 pieces of Spanish America and another 20 of post-independence Latin America of the 19th century; retail value of over $30,000, collection of 410 items.

Most of the 410 coins are in holders, the rest in plastic flips, sometimes with the original holders or envelopes when possible, otherwise in the collector's 2x2 holders with the coin description and other information written by the collector. The coins have each been carefully described by the collector on an Excel spreadsheet, including the country, denomination, catalog number, and his estimated grade. Most of the 1501-1600 century coins were assigned a catalog number from Saurma, with other references where needed. From 1601 onwards, the KM catalog was used, with occasional other catalog references when appropriate. For the first two centuries, nearly all the coins are silver, with an increasing proportion of copper coins for the later years. In his dedication and goal to make this collection 'unique', he also added a gold coin for each century: a ducat of Austria dated 1573, a 1/3 ducat of Austria dated 1675, a ½ escudo of Spain dated 1788 and a 20 franc piece from France dated 1876.

The collector acquired around 10% of these world coins before about 2004, but enthusiastically built this amazing collection afterwards, concentrating at first on 1500-1799, nearly completed by 2007. In 2010 he decided to extend the collection by another hundred years, 1800-1899, almost completed by the end of 2011, finished in 2012. Because of his intense concentration on achieving that goal, it was fulfilled in only a few short years.

The majority of the 16th and 17th century coins are German, but from as many different states as he could find, including Frankfurt an der Oder, Glatz, Leuchtenberg, Henneberg, Kaufbüren, Worms, Hanau-Lichtenberg, and so on. There are numerous fascinating specimens, a groschen of Elbing 1539, a liard of Desana 1584, 2 scherf of Erfurt 1621, 2 skilling of Glückstadt 1677, etc. Because of the wide span of different countries, states, denominations, and types, this collection is a wonderful basis for European numismatic and general history from 1500 to 1899, with an insight into the Americas for the later centuries. For example, take the 1673 coin of Stolberg-Wernigerode, which cries for research: where was Stolberg, why was Wernigerode part of the state of Stolberg, what was its history, did it remain a state long after? A little research, and the owner will have been enriched with a lasting understanding of its history, with another 399 coins left to research! The collection is complete and intact, except for two pieces that have been removed to be sold in this auction as separate lots, both Swedish plate money, a ½ daler dated 1716 and a double daler dated 1742, each replaced in the collection with an alternative issue for those two dates. Please note that there are TWO coins for each of the following dates: 1570, 1571, 1588, 1592, 1631, 1683, 1760, 1797, 1871, and 1876.

Photos and detailed spreadsheet of all coins in this lot are available upon request.