Gold Coins, Spectacular Jewels and Art to be Sold at Government Auction's Jan ...
/PRNewswire/ -- On Jan. 1, California-based Government Auction will host its seventh annual New Year's sale, featuring rare gold coins, fine jewelry and gems; art and antique music machines. More than $2M in merchandise will be sold to the highest bidder in the absentee, phone and Internet auction, with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com.The company traditionally reserves for its New Year's sale only the best and most valuable items in its inventory. "Collectors love it because most of the lots start with an opening bid of only one or two dollars," said Chris Budge, of Government Auction's Marketing department.
A strong candidate for top entry in the 2,000-lot sale is a 1795 "13-leaves" $10 gold eagle coin. Fewer than 5,100 gold eagle coins were minted in 1795, and only 400-500 examples of the 13-leaves variation are known to exist. These coins hold strong interest with collectors because they were the first U.S. gold eagle coins to be stamped. Designed by Robert Scott, each weighs 17.5 grams and has 91.7% gold content. The coin in Government Auction's sale is graded NGC AU by Numismatic Guaranty Corp. Estimate: $123,000-$246,000.