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Auction 65 Highlights

Welcome to Smalls Auctions Sale 65.

To see out the old decade and to usher in the new we have accumulated an outstanding collection of N.S.W. 1813 Dumps including two unique examples.

The first is a unique coin is a E3 Dump struck in copper. Like the chicken and the egg one can argue what came first the Holey Dollar or the Dump but, if you plump for the Dump then on our research it is arguable that this coin is the earliest surviving Australian Colonial coin.

We also have on offer another copper dump which we have labelled a ‘new’ B6 Type. This coin lay undiscovered and unappreciated in an old collection but, what was first thought to be one of the contemporary copper forgeries unearthed in the Pitt Street excavations 1927 turned out to be a totally new variety that incorporated various aspects of the C4, A1 and D2 Dumps. The significance of this discovery should not be underestimated as it is the ‘missing link’ in the production of the dumps that turns 200 years of numismatic research on its head.

There are three examples of the contemporary copper dump forgeries which were long suspected of being the work of recidivist William Henshall after he had left the employ of the government. To round it off there are examples of the E3, A1 and D2 Silver Dumps.

For collectors of rare coin varieties, we draw your attention to an Australian 1924 ‘Indian Obverse’ Penny in PCGS MS64RB. This coin from the ‘Benchmark Collection’ is the equal finest known. There is also a strong selection of third-party graded coins many in exceptional grades.

Also, on offer is a selection of Australian Pre-decimal banknotes including probably the only genuine ‘Coombs-Watt’ Ten Shilling Star Replacement Note graded PCGS 62 OPQ. A quick review of the sales records of other ‘uncirculated’ notes of this issue reveals that most have skipped up a grade or two after they have been pressed and flattened. It remains a scourge of the Australian Banknote market that over 90% of high-grade notes of this era show signs of having been doctored.

This sale will run over the two weeks commencing 20th December finishing on the 5th January to afford us a Christmas Break. The staff of Smalls Auctions wishes all our customers a very ‘Merry Christmas’ or “Festivus for the Rest of Us.”