Goldberg Coins and Collectibles

Sale 81

The Pre-Long Beach Sale

Buffalo Nickels

Lot	Photo	Description	Realized
Lot 727		1913-D. Type 1. PCGS graded MS-66 PQ. CAC Approved. Boldly struck and untoned. A lustrous specimen just shy of Superb 67 quality. Should prove popular with bidders. Pop 353; 72 finer (PCGS # 3916) . Estimated Value $600 - 650. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 728		1914. PCGS graded MS-66 PQ. CAC Approved. Lovely golden toning. A sparkling gem with intense underlying luster that breathes fiery life into the highlights of the Indian's profile and Black Diamond's hulk. Yes, the buffalo had a name, and he was a resident of New York's Central Park Zoo. He was about 17 years old at the time he posed for his portrait, according to Lange's authoritative guide to the Buffalo Nickel series. Nicely struck with crisp details aplenty. Pop 154; 29 finer, 7 in 66+, 22 in 67 (PCGS # 3924) . Estimated Value $1,000 - 1,050. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 729		1914. PCGS graded MS-65. CAC Approved. PQ. Well struck and lustrous. A gem (PCGS # 3924) . Estimated Value $350 - 375. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $423
Lot 730		1915-D. NGC graded MS-67. Boldly struck and mostly untoned. Each side of this deeply lustrous Gem displays dominant nickel-pure shine and patina with full spot-free iridescence intermingled toward the borders when the coin is held and tilted back and forth by someone admiring the fresh, clean appearance. We should like to convey to you the information that the 1915-D as an issue is the first unevenly struck Buffalo Nickel from the Denver Mint (per Lange, 2000). However, the present example is unusually well detailed in all areas and looks for all intents and purposes as bright, as bold, as a P-mint version. In all respects, this carefully preserved specimen is a significant exemplar, worthy of the finest date-and-mint assembly devoted to the Buffalo Nickel series. Pop 2; none finer at NGC. Estimated Value $11,000 - 12,000. View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 731		1918-S. NGC graded MS-65. Attractive light toning. Wonderful lustrous surfaces are flourishing with rich nickel gray and silvery brilliance under the delicate toning. Well struck for this difficult date, with strong obverse and reverse details present, approaching "full". Fully struck coins of this S-mint date are rare. The Mint was having to work overtime in 1916-18 which made quality control decline. A scarce issue in all grades above Fine, this S-mint delivery is the most challenging 1918-dated Nickel to locate at the highest levels of Mint State preservation. One of the main reasons for this is deficiency of strike, as noted. Many 1918-S Nickels display evidence of having been struck either from dies that were spaced too far apart in order to extend their useful life, or from reverse dies that were leftover from previous years' production. Any survivor that has secured at least an MS64 grade from the leading certification services is a conditionally rare coin, particularly if it possesses above-average striking detail and vibrant luster. The Type 2 Buffalo Nickel series ran from 1913 through 1938, and it is one of the most widely collected series in all of U.S. numismatics. This type was created when the Mint discovered that the Type 2 Buffalo Nickel did not hold up well in circulation. In particular, the placement of the reverse denomination FIVE CENTS on a raised mound was most unfortunate because this critical feature rapidly wore away with use. In the new Type 2 design, the Mint placed the denomination in exergue below the straight line upon which the bison was now made to stand. Additionally, Mint Engraver Charles E. Barber (who carried out the modifications to James Earle Fraser's original work) also smoothed out the fields and slightly modified the Native American's portrait on the obverse and the reverse bison which had the result of erasing much of the rusticity of the Type 1 motif. Pop 16; 2 finer, 1 in 66, 1 in 66 Star. Estimated Value $11,000 - 12,000. View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 732		1921-S. PCGS graded Fine-15. Flat at high points but still nicely preserved; a quite attractive circulated example (PCGS # 3948) . Estimated Value $100 - 110. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $141
Lot 733		1926-D. NGC graded MS-67. Boldly struck with lovely toning. We have handled precious few '26-D Nickels that are as sharply struck as the lovely MS67 Superb Gem in this lot. Specialists in the Buffalo Nickel series are well aware of the striking irregularities that plague this D-mint release. In fact, softness of detail is so extreme for most examples that, if they are submitted for third-party certification at all, such coins are severely limited as to the grade that they can obtain, usually quite low. The present example, however, possesses all of the fine qualities that a collector should demand for the Gem Mint State 67 level. To start with the strike, it is overall knife-edge sharp in appearance. In fact, the few isolated design elements that are not sharp are boldly defined, scarcely a difference. As for this coin's other features, the luster is jam-packed and satiny, while the surfaces are free of bothersome abrasions. Most assuredly there are not spots, either. A band of multicolor peripheral toning more than attracts attention, it is one of the main focal areas after the bold motifs. Worthy of a strong bid. Pop 3; none finer at NGC. Estimated Value $18,000 - 19,000. View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 734		1926-S. PCGS graded VF-25. Evenly worn and problem-free. Scarce. Only 970,000 made (PCGS # 3959) . Estimated Value $180 - 190. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $176
Lot 735		1927-D. PCGS graded MS-64 PQ. CAC Approved. Light hint of gold tone with lustrous surface and attractive fields. The value jumps in MS-65. Pop 430; 76 finer (PCGS # 3961) . Estimated Value $700 - 800. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $823
Lot 736		1936-D. PCGS graded MS-66 PQ. CAC Approved. A hint of nice toning. A bold strike on this often inadequately struck D-mint date. Pop 732; 70 finer, 3 in 66+, 65 in 67, 2 in 68 (PCGS # 3978) . Estimated Value $250 - 300. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Unsold
Lot 737		1937. PCGS graded Proof 66. Fully brilliant and real choice. Only 5,769 struck. A worthwhile Gem �66 by any standard, the luster is not in the least timid or yielding on this handsome and dazzling mirror Proof 1937 Nickel, while brilliance personifies both sides. The strike, like the luster, is confident, indeed, as bold as ever seen on virtually any Proof in this popular series. Mirror Proofs were struck in 1936 and again in 1937. The 1938 issue struck only at the Denver Mint saw the end of the Buffalo Nickel design (PCGS # 3996) . Estimated Value $1,300 - 1,400. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $1,821
Lot 738		1937. NGC graded Proof 65. A beautiful, gleaming untoned Proof. Bold with nice Gem quality originality. Only 5,769 minted. Estimated Value $900 - 950. View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 739		1937-D. 3 legs. PCGS graded EF-45. A popular type with nice natural toning. A Buffalo with three legs? For over seven decades, the 1937-D Buffalo Nickel "three legger" has fascinated collectors and the public alike. Caused by the results of an effort to repair a damaged die, many reached circulation before supervisors at the Denver Mint caught the error. The coins� signature feature is the buffalo�s missing foreleg. Both stump and hoof remain, but the leg is gone. That portion of the die had been completely effaced when the coins were struck, all of them are missing the right front leg (PCGS # 3982) . Estimated Value $750 - 800. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $852
Lot 740		1938-D. MS-67+. Intensely lustrous. Superb. Pop 32; 9 finer in 68 (PCGS # 3984) . Estimated Value $250 - 275. View details and enlarged photos Check results on similar lots	Realized $734
Lot 741		A collection of Buffalo Nickels. 1913 to 1938-D. Missing only 1915-S, otherwise would be a complete set. Housed in a Whitman album. A very nice set with a lot of key and semi key dates. Coins will grade AG to XF. Lot of 63 coins. Estimated Value $450 - 500. View details	Realized $764
Lot 742		A lot of Buffalo Nickels. Consists of: 1926 (1); 1936-S/S (1); 1937 (2). Coins will grade AU to UNC. Lot of 4 coins. Estimated Value $100 - 110. View details	Unsold