COLUMBUS — Coin dealers will get their first public shot today to buy the coins and currency acquired with state money by Tom Noe.

An estimated 3,400 items will be on display in an undisclosed Columbus location where bidders can check out pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, dollars — even $10,000 bills. Sealed bids are due March 29.

But the winning bid must exceed $7.5 million. That’s the amount offered by Spectrum Numismatics, which had managed the Noe fund that had initially purchased the items that are now at auction.

The collectibles represent the biggest portion of the coin funds offered since they were liquidated last May amid allegations that Mr. Noe illegally took money from the funds.

More than $17 million in coins are awaiting sale this summer, said William Brandt, whose firm, Development Specialists Inc., is responsible for liquidating the state’s coin investment. About $1 million in coins have been sold in private deals, he said.

The auction items are from the Spectrum Fund, a subsidiary created by Mr. Noe and funded with money from the $50 million in coin funds he managed on behalf of the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation.

Mr. Noe is awaiting trial on state charges that he stole and laundered more than $3 million from the coin funds. He also faces charges in federal court that he illegally funneled more than $45,000 into President Bush’s re-election campaign.

Mr. Brandt said the value of the coins and currency on sale was estimated at $6.5 million. He negotiated with Spectrum Numismatics to get the minimum bid.

The company offered $7.5 million, he said, to “neutralize” his concerns about the nature of coin transactions handled by the fund. If the firm had not offered to pay the higher amount, Mr. Brandt said he would have filed a civil lawsuit against Spectrum.

“I have a lot of concerns about how this fund was operated,” he said. “This is not just a sale, but a settlement agreement.”

The deal between the state and Spectrum Numismatics, however, does not preclude any potential criminal investigation, Mr. Brandt said.

Spectrum officials could not be reached for comment yesterday. However, the firm’s parent company, the Escala Group, acknowledged the deal in late February, saying it was “pleased” to conclude its dealings with Ohio officials.

“Escala’s and Spectrum’s agreement with DSI resolves all disputes between the parties related to the Capital Coin Fund and the related activities in Ohio,” said Jose Miguel Herrero, chief executive officer of Escala.

Auction items include coins from the 19th and 20th centuries and a number of $10,000 bills. The U.S. Mint no longer produces the bills, which were once showcased in a Las Vegas casino.

The Ohio Highway Patrol is housing the items, but has not said where they are located. They are not available for public viewing — unless the public registers for the auction. That requires a refundable deposit of $10,000.

Some coin dealers have raised questions about the auction, saying it is constructed to make sure Spectrum Numismatics wins the entire collection.

Laura Sperber, co-president of Legend Numismatics, based in Lincroft, N.J., blasted the sealed-bid auction as a “diversion.”

“I’m furious about this. It’s not a fair public auction. They’re demanding $10,000 just to see the stuff and then you find out Spectrum [Numismatics] already has a bid on the whole thing. Even if you bid on the stuff, Spectrum probably will get it anyway,’’ she said.

Mr. Brandt said he will sell the coins and currency individually if all of the separate bids exceed $7.5 million. If not, they’ll go to Spectrum, he said, regardless of what coin dealers want.

“My goal is not to please the coin world,” he said. “My goal is to get back for the state the money that belongs in the Bureau of Workers’ [Compensation].”

David Bowers, a New Hampshire-based coin dealer, said he didn’t know why the state would charge someone $10,000 to view the coins, saying “tire kickers” can be weeded out by requiring qualifications including a bank letter.

“If someone can sit down and write a check for $7.5 million, you don’t charge them to do this. You take them out to dinner and give them a bottle of champagne,” he said.

(via toledoblade.com)

(Irvine, CA) – Conducted in three sessions on March 16 and 17, 2006, Bowers and Merena’s Official Auction of the March 2006 Baltimore Coin & Currency Convention realized more than $4 million.

“While we witnessed strong prices realized for all U.S. coin series, there were two types of consignments that performed exceptionally well in our Baltimore Auction: those with fresh material and/or seldom-offered types, and those with classic numismatic rarities,” stated Bowers and Merena President Steve Deeds,

“Lot 6 offered a Saint Patrick ‘Farthing’ in PCGS VF-30 whose realized price of $10,638 surpassed the 2006 Guide Book price of $8,000 for EF examples,” said Deeds.

“We also sold, as lot 2081, a historic sandblast proof striking of the 1928 Hawaiian Sesquicentennial Commemorative Half Dollar. This coin, which is new to the world of third-party certification, secured an unsurpassable grade of Proof-66 from NGC just prior to the auction, and then went on to demand a realized price of $65,550 from the winning bidder. Originally presented to Juliette Mae Frazer, designer of the Hawaiian commem, this coin is the eighth of just 50 sandblast proof specimens distributed by the Captain Cook Sesquicentennial Commission. The combined PCGS and NGC population for this issue in Proof-66 is just ²⁄₀.”

Jeff Ambio, Director of Numismatics for Bowers and Merena said there was also strong bidding on “classic rarities.”

“A key-date 1892-S Morgan Dollar that PCGS certified as MS-63 traded hands for $60,950 despite a Coin Dealer Newsletter (CDN, commonly referred to as the “Greysheet”) bid of $42,000 in this grade. Another Silver Dollar of note is an elusive 1921 Peace Dollar in NGC Satin Proof-64 that realized $41,975 as lot 1807.”

“Moving on to gold rarities, we sold an 1876 Three-Dollar gold piece in PCGS Proof-65 DCAM for $78,200, an exceptionally well produced and preserved 1909-O Indian Half Eagle graded MS-64 by PCGS for $175,375, and a key-date 1921 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle in PCGS MS-62 for $134,550. The final two coins sold for well in excess of their Greysheet bids, which were ‘only’ $106,000 and $120,000, respectively,” said Ambio.

For a complete list of prices realized for the Official March 2006 Baltimore Auction, visit Bowers and Merena on the Internet at www.bowersandmerena.com.

Through the U.S. Mint Web site – usmint.gov – you can see what’s available for purchase online or you can order a catalog. Some coins have limited mintages and others are available for limited times, so don’t delay if you want to buy a particular coin or set.

Collectors who tarried earlier this year were shut out of the silver dollars commemorating the 300th anniversary of the birth of Benjamin Franklin. All four available coins – proof and uncirculated versions of the “Scientist” and “Founding Father” dollars – sold out quickly.

Available now are proof sets of the five state quarters that will be released this year – Nevada, Nebraska, Colorado, North Dakota and South Dakota. The proof set is $15.95 and the silver proof set is $23.95. The sets containing the five quarters and the other general circulation coins minted this year will be available later.

Just released is the American Eagle gold proof one-tenth-ounce coin. This is the collector’s version of the gold bullion investment coins produced by the mint. The obverse has Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ well-known figure of Liberty, while the reverse has a male eagle carrying an olive branch flying over a female in her nest with hatchlings. The one-tenth-ounce coin sells for $100 and has a mintage limit of 25,000.

The one-ounce ($770), quarter-ounce ($200) and four-coin proof sets ($1,350) also are still available. The half-ounce American Eagle ($385) will be available March 28.

Platinum proof versions of the American Eagle in the one-ounce, half-ounce and one-tenth-ounce mintages have sold out, as has the four-coin set. The quarter-ounce platinum American Eagle is still available for $410.

Across the pond: Great Britian’s 2006 Gold Proof Sovereigns are available for prices ranging from $185 for the half-sovereign to $2,245 for the four-coin set. For more information, log on to www.royalmint.com and click on the American flag at the top to get the prices in U.S. currency.

(via nj.com)

U.S. customs officials have returned 60 kilograms (132 pounds) of 13th century coins to Saudi Arabia after seizing the stolen artifacts from a Florida diver who illegally removed them from a shipwreck in the Red Sea more than 10 years ago.

“Artifacts such as these coins are not trinkets that can be pilfered and sold to the highest bidder,” said Julie L. Myers, assistant secretary of homeland security for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “To their rightful owners, these artifacts are priceless items that are cherished and proudly displayed as a testament to their cultural history.”

Saudi Ambassador to the United States Prince Turki Al-Faisal said the coins reflect “Saudi Arabia’s unique history as an ancient trade center and as the birthplace of Islam.” He said the return of the antiquities shows the United States’ respect for cultural heritage.

After being confronted by ICE agents, a Florida man admitted to stealing the coins during a recreational dive in Saudi territorial waters in 1994. He surrendered the artifacts to customs officials in April 2005.

Following is the text of the ICE press release:

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) March 6, 2006

ICE Returns Cultural Antiquities To Saudi Ambassador

13th Century coins were pilfered from Saudi territorial waters in the Red Sea

WASHINGTON, DC – Department of Homeland Security officials today returned to the Saudi Government 132 pounds of ancient coins seized in an investigation after being illegally removed from a shipwreck in the Red Sea.

“Artifacts such as these coins are not trinkets that can be pilfered and sold to the highest bidder,” said Julie L. Myers, Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “To their rightful owners, these artifacts are priceless items that are cherished and proudly displayed as a testament to their cultural history.”

“These coins are treasured artifacts that reflect the cultural heritage of humanity as well as Saudi Arabia’s unique history as an ancient trade center and as the birthplace of Islam,” said Saudi Ambassador Prince Turki Al-Faisal. “Their recovery and return to the Kingdom is an example of the deep friendship between Saudi Arabia and the United States and the respect the U.S. has for cultural heritage.”

ICE agents in Miami launched an investigation following a tip that led agents to a Key West man who admitted to improperly taking the coins while on a recreational dive in Saudi Arabia in 1994. An Interpol Red Notice posted by Saudi law enforcement provided additional information on the coins and the subject.

Records show that the subject communicated in chat rooms that focused on Islamic coins in order to learn how to restore the coins and to solicit possible buyers. Agents, acting in an undercover capacity, engaged the suspect via email eventually identifying themselves as ICE agents and confronting him in person with the facts of the case. The subject surrendered the coins to agents on April 7, 2005 and the coins were administratively forfeited on July 9, 2005.

(via usinfo.state.gov)

Dr Matthew Ponting, from the University’s School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, is investigating the chemical composition of the coins to further understanding of how and where they were made. Dr Ponting believes that analysis of the coins will also shed more light on the political and economic issues of the Roman Empire.

Dr Ponting and his colleague Professor Kevin Butcher from the American University of Beirut, are using unique analysis techniques to examine the make-up of the coins and establish their silver content. The analysis will also identify particular chemical elements which will help the archaeologists establish where and how the coins were made.

Dr Ponting said: “For the first time we are able to use a combination of chemical and isotopic analysis on these coins. Chemical analysis will give useful trace element ‘finger prints’ telling us about the type of ores exploited and the technology used in smelting and refining the metal.”

The team is analysing the coins by drilling a small hole in their outer edge to get beneath the treated surface and investigate their different layers.

Dr Ponting added: “By measuring the isotopes of lead in the coins it is often possible to ascertain where that metal came from. This is done by comparing the isotopic ‘signature’ of the silver coin, with isotopic ‘signatures’ of known Roman silver mining regions. In this way I hope to be able to investigate where Rome was getting its silver from.”

Silver coins formed the backbone of currency in the Roman Empire. Roman emperors manipulated the silver content of the coins to solve short-term financial problems frequently caused by government overspending. For the most part, this manipulation involved the reduction of the silver content of the coinage in conjunction with a drop in weight.

Dr Ponting said: “In the 1970s a study documented the silver contents of Roman Imperial silver coins by analysing their surface. Until recently this was the principal reference for economic historians on the monetary policies of the Roman Empire.

“During the 1990s, however, historians realised that many Roman silver coins were deliberately treated to remove some of the copper from their surface, giving impure coins the appearance of being pure and disguising the debasement of the currency. Analysis of the coins’ surface had therefore overestimated their silver content.”

(via yubanet.com)