NGC Certifies Eric P. Newman Part IX

The Newman Collection's 1861 Conferedate Half Dollar Proof Click images to enlarge.

In April 1861, three months after Louisiana seceded from the Union, the New Orleans Mint struck the Confederate Half Dollars on the orders of the Confederate Treasury Secretary. The obverse of these coins reused an 1861-O Seated Liberty die while the reverse featured a distinctive Confederate design: a shield surrounded by the words CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA and HALF DOL.

Four Proofs were struck and presented to Confederate States of America (CSA) dignitaries. They are thought to have included:

• Jefferson Davis, CSA president
• Christopher Memminger, CSA Secretary of the Treasury (the Newman specimen)
• Dr. B.F. Taylor, chief coiner of the New Orleans Mint
• J.L. Riddell, a chemistry professor and a refiner at the New Orleans Mint

The Taylor specimen is now in the collection of the American Numismatic Society, leaving only three examples in private hands. NGC has graded all three, with the ones believed to have been given to Memminger and Riddell both grading NGC PF 40, and the specimen thought to have been given to Davis grading NGC PF 30.

Newman Part IX is the sixth installment of coins from the collection of Eric P. Newman, one of the greatest researchers of US numismatics (the other three auctions relate to paper money). The coin selections, all of which have been certified by NGC, have realized nearly $55 million in the first five sales.

The highest price for a Newman coin was achieved by a phenomenal 1796 Draped Bust Quarter graded NGC MS 67 that sold for $1,527,000 in Newman Part II. Amazingly, Newman Part IX contains a second 1796 Draped Bust Quarter, this one graded NGC MS 64.

Another highlight from Newman Part IX is a 1795 Small Eagle $5. Graded NGC MS 64, it is a high-grade example of this rare, one-year type—one of the first gold coins struck by the US Mint.

“We are privileged that NGC has been chosen once again to certify selections from one of the greatest collections in the history of numismatics,” said NGC Chairman Mark Salzberg. “The breadth of this collection is truly astonishing and reflects Newman’s never-ending pursuit of knowledge.”

Prominent numismatists Stuart and Maureen Levine, who serve as advisers to the nonprofit Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society (EPNNES), said, "After the extraordinary success of the selections previously certified by NGC, we were pleased to again choose NGC to certify coins from the Eric P. Newman collection. Bidders trust the accuracy and consistency of NGC's grading, which has given them the confidence to pay record prices in the past sales."

The Newman IX coins have been added to NGC’s Newman image gallery, which includes every coin that has been sold from the scholar’s collection. To view the gallery, visit NGCcoin.com/Newman

To view the Newman IX sale, visit the Heritage Auctions website HA.com/1260. The auction will be open for bidding around October 13.

EPNNES Foundation Statement Items being sold are from the extensive collection of Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society (a Missouri not-for-profit corporation) and have been assembled over a period of 90 years. Proceeds of the sale of all items will be used exclusively for supplementing the Society’s museum operations and scholarly numismatic research efforts and for the benefit of other not-for-profit institutions selected by Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society for public purposes.

Related links

• NGC-certified Newman Collection Rarities Realize Top Dollar at Heritage Auction
• NGC-Certified Eric P. Newman Part II Tops $23 Million
• NGC-certified Eric P. Newman Part III Realizes $6.1 Million
• NGC-certified Eric P. Newman Part IV Realizes $11 Million
• NGC-certified Newman Part V Achieves $10.4 Million