The coin collecting community will have to wait at least a little longer for collector Donald G. Partrick’s 1787 Brasher doubloon and other numismatic rarities to cross the auction block.

Partrick and Heritage Auctions jointly announced June 10 that, at the request of Partrick and his family, the auction firm has placed on hold the second, third and fourth Donald G. Partrick Collection auctions.

“Because the family has no immediate use for additional funds, and Don continues to delight in his collection, they proposed an extension agreement,” said Heritage co-chairman James Halperin. “Don and his family are wonderful clients and a pleasure to work with, and we are very grateful for the trust they have placed in us. Therefore, we were happy to accommodate their wishes. We look forward to conducting the remaining Partrick auctions at a later date, to be determined.”

No additional comments on the sale will be released until the postponed auctions are rescheduled, Halperin said.

The postponed sales originally were scheduled for the 2015 and 2016 American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money auctions and the 2016 Florida United Numismatists convention sale.

Partrick and his family released the following statement June 10:

“Mr. Donald G. Partrick wishes to thank Heritage Auctions for the outstanding catalogue and incredible results achieved for the sale of my coins, part 1. It was truly a wonderful experience. It exceeded my expectations and I look forward to my future sales with Heritage. I love my coins and would like to continue to enjoy them a while longer.”

Part I of the Partrick Collection offered Jan. 8, 2015, by Heritage in conjunction with the FUN convention, realized $25.93 million.

Among the highlights of that sale was a Numismatic Guaranty Corp. MS-65? red and brown 1792 Birch cent stickered by Certified Acceptance Corp., which brought $2,585,000;  a Judd 12 1792 Eagle on Globe quarter dollar pattern coin in copper,  NGC Mint State 63 brown, CAC, which realized $2,232,500; and one of four original 1861 Confederate States of America half dollars, NGC Proof 30, CAC, that sold for $881,250.

Remaining highlights from the Partrick Collection to be offered in the to-be-rescheduled auction sessions include what some consider the finest 1787 Brasher doubloon, as well as quality sets of New Jersey and Connecticut state coinage by die variety.

Partrick has owned the 1787 Brasher, EB Punch on Wing, New York Style doubloon since he acquired it for $725,000 from Part I of The Garrett Collection Sales conducted Nov. 28 and 29, 1979, by Bowers & Ruddy Galleries.

In the Garrett sale, the coin was offered described as “Brilliant Uncirculated, MS-63.” The coin is not currently certified by a third-party grading service, according to Halperin.

Partrick’s coin is one of seven 1787 Brasher doubloons exhibiting New York silversmith Ephraim Brasher’s EB counterstamp on the eagle’s right wing (to viewer’s left). One 1787 New York Style doubloon is known with the EB counterstamp on the eagle’s breast, while six coins have the EB Punch on Wing. Brasher added his counterstamp to his private coinage to attest to the quality of gold it contained. The New York Style bears designs based on the New York coat of arms. Brasher also produced Lima Style pieces, during his earliest efforts at private coinage, using a design modeled after the widely circulated 1742-dated Spanish 8-escudo gold coins.

Partrick’s 1787 Brasher doubloon is traced to the collection of Massachusetts numismatist Matthew A. Stickney and later ownership by Col. James W. Ellsworth.

The doubloon, according to the Bowers & Ruddy auction catalog, was acquired by Baltimore business magnate John Work Garrett in 1923 as part of a private transaction arranged by New York dealer Wayte Raymond.

The finest 1787 Brasher doubloon certified by a third-party grading service is one of the pieces of the New York style with the EB Punch on Wing; it is graded NGC MS-63 and bears a CAC green sticker.

That example, once owned on separate occasions by celebrated numismatists Harold P. Newlin, R. Coulton Davis and Virgil Brand, realized $4,582,500 on Jan. 9, 2014, during Heritage’s FUN auction. 

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