Featuring The Len Novotny Collection Part II, Minor Coinage of the Republic of Mexico
IRVINE, Calif. – Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio, world and ancients division of Stack’s Bowers Galleries, will conduct the official world auction of the March 2011 Whitman Coin & Collectibles Baltimore Expo. The premiere auction conducted under the Stack’s Bowers Galleries banner, the March 2011 Baltimore Auction continues the tradition and success of America’s most prestigious numismatic auctioneers.
The Stack’s Bowers Galleries March 2011 Official Baltimore Auction will feature 7,690 total lots, including three foreign coin and paper money sessions by Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio, presenting more than 2,500 lots. In addition, there will be four U.S. coin sessions and one U.S. currency session. Lot viewing will be conducted by appointment at the firm’s Irvine, California, headquarters March 8-15, at the firm’s New York office March 21-23, and onsite at the Baltimore Convention Center March 28-April 1. The auction will be held at the Baltimore Convention Center beginning Tuesday, March 29, concluding Friday, April 1
“Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio has become a main fixture at the Baltimore show, as we conduct three major world auctions per year at this venue,” said Rick Ponterio, executive vice president. “We are proud to offer collectors a regular tri-annual venue for foreign and ancient coins, as well as world paper money, and we certainly have an exceptional selection crossing the auction block for this turn.”
This auction should prove to be of great interest to the collecting community, especially with the offering of part II of the Len Novotny Collection of Mexican coinage, which was quite popular when it was first presented during the January 2011 N.Y.I.N.C. Auction. Part II is comprised primarily of minor coinage of the Republic of Mexico. “The Len Novotny Collection should be considered one of the finest collections of its type ever to be sold at public auction,” Ponterio said. “The collection contains many rarities, including pieces that have never before been offered at public auction.” Four different mints of the rare 1888 50 Centavos are offered here.
Lot 9142 1888 Alamos 50 Centavos KM-407 Probably Unique
Lot 9161 1888 Culiacan 50 Centavos KM-407.2 Probably Unique
Lot 9193 1888 Hermosillo 50 Centavos KM-407.5 Extremely Rare
Lot 9215 1888 Mexico City 50 Centavos KM-407.6 Probably Unique
The only 1888 50 Centavos not present in the collection is a Unique example from Guanajuato which is part of the Banco de Mexico collection and not available to collectors. “Many decades of collecting with a thorough approach and a keen eye for quality enabled Novotny to assemble a world class collection, the likes of which may not be seen again at auction for years to come,” Ponterio added. “This catalog is sure to become a standard reference for the Republic Minor coinage of Mexico for several decades.” This collection also contains an impressive set of cap and ray 4 Reales, including a complete date run of Guadelupe y Calvos and the unique 1862 Hermosillo.
Other highlights in Mexican coinage include some rare offerings of Spanish Colonial issues. One item of particular interest is lot 8006, a 1724 gold 4 Escudos. The coin is believed to be unique as a date, struck during the short lived reign of the boy king Luis I. The War of Independence section offers an extremely rare Zongolica 8 Reales at lot 8065, currently one of only five known examples and one that famous Mexican numismatist Frank Grove calls “one of the rarest 8 Reales of the entire Mexican series.” For the collector of cap and ray pesos the auction contains the key 1901 Zacatecas with AZ assayer’s letters, offered as lot 9290. In all, the auction features more than 1,300 lots of Mexican coinage, offering interesting numismatic items to collectors of virtually every price range.
World coin highlights include lot 10071, an 1813 Argentina 8 Escudos. Historically it is very important as this coin is the first Republic 8 Escudos for all of Latin America. Other world highlights include lot 10103, a lovely 1837 Costa Rican 4 Escudos of the Central American type graded NGC AU55, and lot 10107, a Denmark Gold Ducat of Christian V dated 1671/69 and graded NGC MS63. The auction also features nearly 600 lots of world paper money, including lot 11250, an Iran Imperial Bank of Persia 25 Tomans P-6 in Specimen; lot 11328, a Lebanon Banque De Syrie Et Du Libon 10 Livres 1939 P-17; and the ever popular Saudi Arabia 10 Riyals 1953 P-1 Haj Pilgrimage Note at lot 11524.
All lot descriptions and images in the March 2011 Baltimore Auction can be viewed online at the Stack’s Bowers Galleries website, www.stacksbowers.com. Printed catalogs are available upon request by calling 949.253.0916. Online bidding will commence in early March and pre-auction bids will be accepted at www.stacksbowers.com; by e-mail at auction@stacksbowers.com; by phone at 949.253.0916; by fax at 949.253.4091; and by postal mail addressed to Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio, Baltimore March 2011, 18061 Fitch, Irvine, CA, 92614. Interested bidders are also encouraged to view lots onsite in Baltimore in March and bid in-person at the live auction, or live online through the Stack’s Bowers Galleries website. A complete auction and lot viewing schedule is available at www.stacksbowers.com or by calling 949.253.0916.
About Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio
Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio is the world and ancients auction division of Stack’s Bowers Galleries. It was founded in 1982 as Ponterio & Associates by Richard Ponterio, renowned specialist in world and ancient numismatics, who is now executive vice president of Stack’s Bowers Galleries. Past auctions have included such notable coin collections as the Wa She Wong Collection, the John S. Davenport Collection, the Witte Museum Collection, the Amat Collection, the Joe Lasser Collection, and the James Hunnicut Collection. Distinguished paper money collections include the East Bay Collection of International Bank Notes, and the Eduard Kann Chinese Bank Note Collection, along with treasure collections from the shipwrecks “Nicobar,” “Rooswijk,” and “Capitana.”
For more information about the Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio March 2011 Baltimore Auction, call 949.253.0916 or visit www.stacksbowers.com. For media inquiries, call Kris Briggs, marketing manager.