Stack’s Bowers & Ponterio is excited to announce the conclusion of their Spring 2025 Hong Kong (SAR) Auction, which spanned seven days and included over 7,600 lots of coins, medals, tokens, and currency. The auction exceeded expectations, realizing over $21.8 million versus the pre-sale high estimate of just over $19.5 million. The results again showcased the market leadership for which Stack’s Bowers & Ponterio is known and signaled a strengthening Asian market. (All prices include the buyer’s premium.)
The highly-anticipated Rarities Night featured vintage Chinese treasures, with many items greatly outpacing their estimates. The catalog cover coin (lot 40185), featuring Chang Tso-lin the “Mukden Tiger,” achieved the sale’s highest realization at $1,020,000. Other highlights included the gold Dragon and Peacock 20 Dollars (lot 40070), which sold for $396,000, as well as the Gold K’uping Tael (lot 40155), which garnered $528,000. A gold striking of the Pavilion Dollar (lot 40159), sold for $384,000, while a magnificent example of the “Seven Three Reversed Pattern” Dollar (lot 40057), brought $660,000—more than four times its low estimate. The session, which comprised 218 coins, reached an impressive total of $12,361,020.
Beyond the Rarities Night session, a massive gold 10 Tael Ingot (lot 41050) garnered $66,000 and a Hong Kong Pattern Dollar that once belonged to Sir Hercules Robinson, the Fifth Governor of Hong Kong (lot 42092), realized $102,000. From the Philippines, an exceptionally rare 1903-S 50 Centavos (lot 42552), reached $55,200, while from the Netherlands East Indies, a mysterious emergency issue 48 Stivers (lot 42494), sold for $26,400.
Sessions offering World Paper Money also performed well, as the total of all lots sold reached $3,559,461, just short of the department’s previous record. An immense rarity, the Yu Chuan Honan Official Bank Tael (lot 30483) realized $60,000, and a pair of $10,000 Yuan front and back specimens from the People’s Republic of China (lot 31059) brought $55,200. A note from the popular Russo-Asiatic Bank (lot 30407) sold for $45,600, and one from the German-Asiatic Bank (lot 30282) reached $43,200.
Other Coin Highlights Include:
Lot 40041: CHINA. Kiangnan. 7 Mace 2 Candareens (Dollar), ND (1897). Nanking Mint. Kuang-hsu (Guangxu). PCGS MS-62. Realized $264,000.
Lot 40064: CHINA. Kweichow. Auto Dollar (7 Mace 2 Candareens), Year 17 (1928). Uncertain Mint, likely Chengdu. PCGS AU-55. Realized $144,000.
Lot 40085: CHINA. Szechuan. Silver Dollar Pattern, ND (1928). Uncertain Mint, possibly Chengdu. PCGS SPECIMEN-62. Realized $102,000.
Lot 40127: CHINA. Silver “Reversed Dragon” Dollar Pattern, Year 3 (1911). Tientsin Mint. Hsuan-t’ung (Xuantong [Puyi]). PCGS SPECIMEN-61. Realized $288,000.
Lot 40164: CHINA. Silver Dollar Pattern, Year 12 (1923). Tientsin Mint. PCGS MS-65. Realized $264,000.
Lot 41026: CHINA. Qing Dynasty. 1000 Cash, ND (March-August 1854). Board of Works Mint, New Branch. Emperor Wen Zong (Xian Feng). Graded “85” by Zhong Qian Ping Ji Grading Company. Realized $21,000.
Lot 42082: CHINA. Brass 350 Yuan Pattern, 1981. NGC PROOF-68 Ultra Cameo. – Realized $36,000.
Lot 42593: STRAITS SETTLEMENTS. Silver Dollar Pattern, 1903. Edward VII. NGC MATTE PROOF-61. Realized $33,600.
Lot 42608: THAILAND. 8 Baht (Tot), ND (1863). Bangkok Mint. Rama IV. NGC MS-63. Realized $19,200.
Other Currency Highlights:
Lot 30378: CHINA–FOREIGN BANKS. Banque de l’Indo-Chine. 100 Dollars = 100 Piastres, 15.1.1902. P-S440Cs. S/M#T204. Specimen. PMG Gem Uncirculated 65 EPQ. Realized $38,400.
Lot 31196: HONG KONG (SAR). Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation. 5 Dollars, 1.1.1906. P-161cts. KNB48CT. Color Trial Specimen. PMG About Uncirculated 55. Realized $28,800.
Lot 31392: FRENCH INDO-CHINA. Banque de l’Indo-Chine. 5 Piastres, 6.3.1907. P-35. PMG About Uncirculated 55. Realized $26,400.
Stack’s Bowers Galleries is currently accepting consignments to the 2025 Summer Global Showcase Auction and the Fall 2025 Hong Kong (SAR) Auction, as well as other live and online sales. To include your numismatic items in any of the firm’s upcoming events, contact Stack’s Bowers Galleries at 800-458-464 or [email protected].
About Stack’s Bowers Galleries
Stack’s Bowers Galleries conducts live, internet and specialized auctions of rare U.S. and world coins and currency and ancient coins, as well as direct sales through retail and wholesale channels. The company’s 90+ year legacy includes the cataloging and sale of many of the most valuable United States coin and currency collections to ever cross an auction block — The D. Brent Pogue Collection, The John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, The Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, The Joel R. Anderson Collection, The Norweb Collection, The Cardinal Collection, The Sydney F. Martin Collection and The Battle Born Collection — to name just a few.
World coin and currency collections include The Pinnacle Collection, The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection of World Gold Coins, The Kroisos Collection, The Alicia and Sidney Belzberg Collection, The Salton Collection, The Wa She Wong Collection, the Augustana Collection of gold rarities from across western Europe, the Richard Margolis Collection of world coins and medals and The Thos. H. Law Collection. Recently the firm was awarded the privilege of bringing the most valuable world coin collection to auction – the L. E. Bruun Collection.
The company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, with galleries in New York, Boston, Miami, and Philadelphia. Offices are also located in New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Sacramento, Virginia, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Paris and Vancouver. Stack’s Bowers Galleries hosts an annual Global Showcase in August featuring United States coins and currency, Ancient coins and World coins and currency in its Costa Mesa auction gallery. They are also the Official Auctioneer for several important numismatic events, including the New York International Numismatic Convention, the Whitman Spring, Summer and Winter Expos, the Spring and Fall Hong Kong shows, and the Maastricht Paper Money shows.
