AUCTION Heritage Rare Coin Galleries / 2003 November Signature Sale #334 - Session 1

2003 November Signature Sale #334 - Session 1

Auction CurrencyUSD Auction LocationUnited States In Person PreviewWednesday, November 5,10:00 am - 7:00 pm
Thursday, November 6,8:00 am - 7:00 pm
Friday, Nove...

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Dear Bidders,

Welcome to Heritage’s exciting New York City Signature Sale. This catalog contains more than $10 million of fresh rare coins, and close to 5,000 lots, for your bidding pleasure. A separate catalog is offering the Aaron T. Bliss Collection of Political Buttons and Memorabilia. Due to an exceptional consignment of patterns, we are also offering a full color catalog featuring The New Millennium Collection.

Heritage has held more than 600 auctions since our first sale in 1976, and our record of growth has been unparalleled in the rare coin business. We know how hard we have worked to be the best and the biggest, but we are always mindful that we are but a ‘middleman’ between our consignors and our bidders. We thank them both for enabling our growth.

<b>The Dr. Irving Arenberg Collection, Part I</b>

Dr. Arenberg, a retired otologist, has consigned a simply marvelous type set of American coins, from Half Cents through Double Eagles. Within the collection can be found many rarities, as Dr. Arenberg did not subscribe to the notion that a type representative could only be one of the most common issues in the series. A self-admitted "eclectic” collector, he was also interested in beautiful world coins (which will be sold as Part II at HWCA’s NYINC Signature Sale in January). He pursued beauty and historical significance in all of his acquisitions, seeking beautiful coins with eye appeal and toning, and simply enjoying collecting rather than trying to "fill holes.” While many of his coins are high end, any coin with requisite eye appeal would be carefully examined and considered for purchase.

Dr. Arenberg was a distinguished ear surgeon and an innovator in his specialty of inner ear surgery for Meniere’s disease; several medical products/instruments bear his name, and he has ten US/International patents issued or in progress. He is an internationally recognized expert in Meniere’s disease, endolymphatic hydrops, and Electrocochleography (ECoG) for diagnostic and intra-operative monitoring, and co-innovated the ECoG inner ear intra-operative monitoring for surgical management for Meniere’s disease and endolymphatic hydrops.

Dr. Arenberg has received awards and recognition throughout his career, including two international gold medals, the highest award from the National Institute of Health. He has participation on the boards of seven peer-reviewed journals, as well as being associate editor of the AMA archives of Otolaryngology. He has edited six books, published more than 100 articles, and counts more than 500 abstracts, papers, or chapters. He has started 2 non-profit organizations, and IntraEar, Inc. was formed to market the intellectual property of his patents. Perhaps his greatest fame came from his diagnosis, a century after Vincent Van Gogh’s death, that the famous artist suffered from Meniere’s disease; this earned him front-page news around the world and multiple television appearances. Out of his extensive business and financial experience, he formed Arenberg and Associates Ltd, LLC to manage accounts for a private holding company, and also manages a hedge fund, specializing in gold stocks and gold bullion.

<b>The Jerry Doty Collection</b>

A lifelong collector, Mr. Doty assembled an impressive collection of Morgan Dollars, and later expanded into $3 pieces and Double Eagles. He also purchased gold and platinum bullion coins and modern commemoratives directly from the Mint. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, in December 1940, and worked for the Madison Heights school district for many years prior to his death in August 2002. A man of modest means, the quality and extent of his holdings is nonetheless inspirational.

<b>The Morris Geiger Collection, Part I</b>

The Estate of Morris Geiger is a fitting tribute to one of America’s best-known numismatic dealers, who plied his trade for more than a half century. Mr. Geiger was born in New York City on February 16, 1919, and as a young man would accompany his stamp-collecting father to many shops in the city. Since many of these shops were coin and stamp dealerships, he was introduced at an early age to those round pieces of Americana that we all love so.
Mr. Geiger was awarded the Bronze Star for his exceptional service as an Army Medic on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. His commendation reports that the lives of innumerable soldiers were saved by this Private during his first 48 hours under fire. After the war, he returned to New York City, and opened a coin shop. He practiced his trade until the early 1970s, when he moved to Florida. He continued to set up at many coin shows as M. Geiger Rare Coins, and was a regular at FUN for three decades. He dealt in both US and world coins, and was most famous for his collection of Latin American coins, with his excellent European collection coming in a close second. Mr. Geiger continued dealing in coins until the time of his death, on Feb. 3, 2003 in Miami. According to a fellow dealer, "Many younger dealers learned a thing or two about coins at his table over his 55 years in the business.”

<b>The Andy Geosits Collection of Barber Halves</b>

California consignor Andy Geosits is a numismatist who enjoys focusing on a series. Heritage previously offered his remarkable collection of Trade Dollars in our September 2002 Long Beach Signature Sale. A coin collector since the age of 15, his love of history, and appreciation of coinage as a physical embodiment of art and commerce, ultimately led him to pursue the designs of the Barber. "As a resident of San Francisco, I found it very exciting that so many of the Trade Dollars designed by William Barber were minted there and shipped to the Orient through the local ports. The quality of design that attracted me to the Trade Dollar would also lead to my appreciation of Charles Barber’s Half Dollar; next to the Trade Dollars, this is my favorite series.”

This nearly complete collection of Barber Halves will attract variety specialists, type collectors, and quality aficionados. Containing 69 specimens, the Geosits Collection includes nearly all of the issues, and was assembled utilizing multiple dealers and auction sources. "I am only lacking three ‘common’ issues from the Philadelphia Mint,” noted Mr. Geosits, "which most collectors would never consider rare. It really is a simple matter that I never found examples that were nice enough to add to the collection.”

I think that Barber Halves are underpriced," opined Mr. Geosits, "and that is one of the reasons that I pursued them. Their true rarity is just now becoming better known to the collecting community. In addition to the design, I was attracted by the fact that this is a ‘doable’ series, even though it is long, with my main challenge coming from condition rarity. Due to the design of Liberty, with her wide expanse of exposed cheek, high-grade specimens without slide marks are difficult to find. Comparing Barber populations in high grade with the population profiles in other series reveals just how rare such specimens are. One indication can be found in the PCGS Registry. Of the seventy pieces in my collection, 15 are certified by NGC, but the remaining coins are sufficient to be ranked #4 on the PCGS Current Finest Registry (as the Burlingame Collection).”

<b>The Holman Family Collection </b>

The Holman Family Collection is an extremely eclectic gathering of specialty collections, totaling nearly 500 high-grade examples of America’s classic rare coins. Assembled over more than a decade, the coins share a common delightful eye-appeal, with many "finest known” pieces that will generate tremendous Registry demand. It includes more than 150 proof minor coins in superlative condition, more than 150 impressive Silver Dollars from three series, nearly 75 Mint State and Proof gold coins, 38 pieces of California Fractional Gold, and 26 Patterns. Each of these collections is worthy of note in its own right, but taken together, they demonstrate Mr. Holman’s broad range of scholarship and collecting interests. The Holman family’s favorite coin was its MS65 NGC High Relief Double Eagle.

<b>The Jones Beach Estate, Part II</b>

Part I of the Jones Beach Estate was sold in our September Long Beach Signature Sale, and we are pleased to offer additional coins in our NYC sale. The Jones Beach Estate is really the story of two generations of numismatists, father and son. While the father was quietly purchasing superb proof type coins, he was also assigning the task of looking through bank rolls to his teenage son. Rather than simply pass along a superb collection, without numismatic knowledge or training, he taught his son about the thrill of the discovery, grading, mintmarks, and better-dates the old-fashioned way - by looking through roll after roll of bank coins. Even more than the knowledge this direct experience generated, this process exhibited a father’s affection for his son and his hobby. Unfortunately, the latest generation of descendents don’t share in their dad’s hobby. Like many other collectors, he made the decision to liquidate some of his numismatic inheritance to provide for the university education of his three children. An optimist, he is setting aside enough coins to permit another numismatic inheritance if future events warrant. The collection is named in honor of the consignor’s father.

<b>The V. Michael Collection, Part II</b>

Part I of the V. Michael Collection was sold in our September Long Beach Signature Sale to great acclaim, and we are proud to offer Part II herewith. Mr. Michael started collecting rare coins more than 50 years ago, and he has been an avid hobbyist ever since. Buffalo Nickels were his first area of concentration, but his interests grew along with his collecting activities. Mr. Michael would typically specialize in one series at a time, and then move on to the next - but he would "buy anything really interesting” that he found along the way while perusing multitudes of retail catalogs and inventory lists. His two favorite series now are Half Dimes and Large Cents, both of which he still finds most intriguing. Mr. Michael graduated from Purdue University, and worked as an independent Mechanical Engineer until he retired 12 years ago.

<b>The New Millennium Collection</b>

Heritage is privileged to offer this important consignment from a private collector in Illinois. Although gold coins of all denominations are represented, the emphasis is on Classic and Liberty Quarter Eagles, which are virtually complete by date and mintmark. The consignor’s patterns are even more notable, as there are many extremely rare and high grade specimens. Off-metal strikings of Seated and Trade Dollars may be of particular interest. The patterns in the New Millennium Collection will be auctioned from a separate catalog, on Saturday, November 8, at 7 PM.

<b>The Sound Beach Collection</b>

The 76 pieces of the Sound Beach Collection are a tribute to what can be accomplished in the Silver Commemorative series, given sufficient time and a discerning eye. Every piece collected by consignor Michael Petito is an eye-appealing Gem, and for rarity one need look no further than his amazing trio of Panama-Pacific trial strikings in copper, silver, and gold. Numismatic treasures are here to be found by those who demand the finest.

Mr. Petito began collecting coins as a young boy in the Bronx, looking through pocket change and the occasional bank roll. As he grew older, he continued to tuck away any coins that he encountered that were unusual or especially attractive. With the growing success of his company designing women’s clothing (Michael Simon), he gained the ability to pursue more significant rarities. He focused on silver commemoratives, finding in that classic series some of the most beautiful coins that America has produced. After his many years collecting, he had also grown to appreciate the seductive beauty of original toned examples. All of his coins are a minimum of MS65, and many are in older holders. Mr. Petito has this to say about selling: "I miss the Pan-Pac patterns already, so I know their new owners will also fall in love with them. It has been a great privilege to hold all three for more than 20 years. I don’t think that a week went by when I didn’t find time to sit and examine them, keeping their acquaintance fresh.”

As we approach the end of 2003, we will soon sign-up our 100,00th registered bidder/member on our award-winning website, HeritageCoin.com. This has been a year of phenomenal growth, and we recognize the impact of all these additional bidders has on our prices realized, and we are thankful. We are also pledged to continue to improve our website in every way possible. HeritageCoin.com was recognized in July as the NLG’s Best Commercial Website, and we intend for our even better website to win next year as well. The quality of the site attracts new bidders, and auctions such as this keep them returning, sale after sale. Our most sincere thanks to all our consignors and our bidders. We welcome your bidding participation via the Internet, U.S. mail, telephone, TeleBid, or in person. Good luck with your bidding!

Sincerely,

Greg Rohan

President

2003 Nov 07
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2003 November Signature Sale #334 - Session 1

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