Rare Gold Certificate Expected to Shine in October Sale

Posted on 9/21/2021

A number of other PMG-certified notes are also expected to realize six figures in the Heritage Auctions sale.

More than 1,100 US banknotes certified by Paper Money Guaranty® (PMG®) are being offered in Heritage Auctions’ Long Beach Expo of US Currency sale. Online bidding has already begun for the auction, which takes place October 6-8, 2021.

A golden opportunity

The top spot in the sale is held by a rare PMG-certified 1882 $1,000 Gold Certificate that features a portrait of Alexander Hamilton, the first US Secretary of the Treasury. Graded PMG 25 Very Fine (lot 21334), it is one of only a handful of such notes known to survive, including an example housed in the collection of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. This note has an estimate of $175,000 and up.

1882 $1,000 Gold Certificate graded PMG 25 Very Fine
Click images to enlarge.

The entire series of 1882 Gold Certificates, which were issued from 1882 to 1906 with a total of eight different signature combinations, is considered one of the rarest varieties of $1,000 bills. For the entire series, just 96,000 examples were printed, and their high face value meant few went unredeemed.

High-denomination notes

Other fascinating rarities in the sale include two PMG-certified high-denomination banknotes. The first is an example of the highest denomination ever used for Small Size Federal Reserve Notes, the same ones used as everyday currency in the United States today. Issued for high-dollar transactions between financial institutions, this 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Note (Chicago) graded PMG 50 About Uncirculated (lot 21397) has an estimate of $120,000 and up.

1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Note (Chicago) graded PMG 50 About Uncirculated
Click images to enlarge.

The second high-denomination rarity in the sale is a 1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note (Richmond) graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated (lot 21395). It has an estimate of $100,000 and up.

1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note (Richmond) graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated
Click images to enlarge.

Other PMG-certified rarities in the auction include:

  • an 1928 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note (Atlanta) graded PMG 35 Choice Very Fine (lot 21394) with an estimate of $100,000 and up
  • an 1863 $50 Interest Bearing Note graded PMG 30 Very Fine and pedigreed to the Mike Coltrane Collection (lot 21254) with an estimate of $90,000 and up
  • 1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note (St. Louis) graded PMG 25 Very Fine (lot 21396) with an estimate of $65,000 and up
  • an 1891 $50 Silver Certificate graded PMG 67 Superb Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 21292) with an estimate of $60,000 and up
  • an 1880 $50 Legal Tender graded PMG 66 Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 21248) with an estimate of $25,000 and up
  • a 1915 $20 Federal Reserve Bank Note (Chicago) graded PMG 6 Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 21313) with an estimate of $25,000 and up
  • a Quincy, Illinois – The Ricker National Bank 1875 $20 graded PMG 64 Choice Uncirculated (lot 21210) with an estimate of $20,000 and up
  • an 1882 $20 Gold Certificate graded PMG 35 Choice Very Fine (lot 21328) with an estimate of $17,500 and up
  • an 1880 $100 Legal Tender graded PMG 15 Choice Fine (lot 21253) with an estimate of $17,500 and up
  • a Bath, Maine – The Bath National Bank uncut sheet of six 1929 $5 notes, all with Serial Number 1, graded PMG 55 About Uncirculated EPQ (lot 20449) with an estimate of $15,000 and up
  • a 1918 $500 Federal Reserve Note (New York) graded PMG 25 Very Fine (lot 21323) with an estimate of $15,000 and up
  • a Davenport, Iowa – The Citizens National Bank 1882 $100 Brown Back graded PMG 61 Uncirculated (lot 21212) with an estimate of $15,000 and up

All estimates provided by the auction house.


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