Value of a nickel hits $3 million in sale

Value of a nickel hits $3 million in sale

 

Photograph of a 1913 Liberty
Head V nickel released by Blanchard
& Co. in New Orleans on Thursday.

  NEW ORLEANS -- A 1913 Liberty Head nick-el minted under myste­rious circumstances, owned by royalty and celebrated in an episode of TV's Hawaii Five-O sold Thursday for $3 million US.

  "Many argue this is the most important coin in our history," said Bruce Smith of Blanchard and Co., which brokered the sale.

  Neither buyer nor seller was identified.

  At least two other coins have sold for more, both at auction. In 1999, an 1804 silver dollar sold for $4.14 mil-lion. Two years ago, a 1933 $20 gold piece went for $7.59 million.

  The $3-million coin is one of only five Liberty Head nickels minted in 1913. The design had been discontinued in 1912 and the mint was switching over to the Indian Head nickel.

  The mint sometimes ran off coins as tests and the coins may have been struck that way, Smith said. They sur­faced in 1920 in the pos­session of Samuel Brown, a former mint employee, and have soared in value ever since.

  The coin sold by Blanchard is consid­ered the second-best in quality and the one with the most colourful history.

  Called the Olsen Specimen for a previ­ous owner, it once belonged to King Farouk of Egypt, an avid coin collector.

  It was also owned by Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss, and was the subject of a 1973 episode of Hawaii Five-O, titled The $100,000 Nickel.

Associated Press