The gold coins associated with the SS Central America continue to grow in value and popularity.
There were a number of SS Central America coins that went under the hammer at the 2007 ANA Convention this past month in Milwaukee. Among them were two of the gold $50 Kellogg Proof Commemoratives which have raised (considerably!) the average prices realized for these classics.
If you are not familiar with these beautiful, giant, 2.5 ounce gold coins, let me give you a brief overview:
In 1855, a few splendid $50 gold coins were minted by Kellogg & Co. using gold processed in their assay office located near the California Gold Rush fields in the Sierra Nevada. Today, only about a dozen of these coins are known to exist, and all are proof strikes with an estimated value of $500,000 for a choice example. In essence, they are extremely rare and out of reach for most collectors if and when one does surface in the marketplace.
By incredible circumstance, the original dies for these rarities survived, and under the direction of the California Historical Society, a limited number of beautiful gem proof cameo commemorative coins were produced using California Gold Rush gold processed in the 1850s by Kellogg!
The story is as incredible as the stunning pieces themselves. Everyone knows the amazing story of the California Gold Rush and how, in 1848, the financial course of our country was dramatically changed. But few people outside of the coin world know just how important the Kellogg $50 gold coins are to knowledgeable coin collectors and investors. Obviously, when an item is valued at more than a half million dollars, it is generally popular with certain kinds of folks.
But now, through amazing set of circumstances, a stunning example of the beautiful Kellogg $50 gold pieces can be acquired by nearly anyone savvy enough to save for their futures. Because of the discovery and recovery of the gold lost in 1857 shipwreck of the SS Central America, these Kellogg numismatic classics have been re-struck using gold actually assayed and processed by Kellogg & Co. during the California Gold Rush.
In the rich treasure trove recovered from the Central America shipwreck, there were a total of 343 Kellogg & Humbert gold monetary ingots of various shapes and sizes found. Of that total, 69 of the gold “bricks” were melted and the gold from those historical artifacts were used to mint these Kellogg commemorative coins which have already become classics.
The market for these beautiful commemoratives has steadily grown, and the auction records, which I watch closely, show steadily increasing prices. As I said at the beginning of this article, there were two lots of the Kellogg commemoratives which went on the auction block at this year’s ANA Convention Signature Sale by HRC. Their lot numbers were 3539 and 3540…and the average price realized was $3,881.25!
I am on record for saying these coins would become numismatic classics, and I believe they will someday be worth multiples of current values. No doubt many of my industry colleagues will find this statement somewhat controversial, but most of them probably never believed the original Kellogg $50 coins would be worth $500,000 today (probably on their way to $1,000,000 or more) either!
The marketplace, however, is showing the trend for the Kellogg $50 commemoratives to be extremely positive: I’ve watched the average auction prices realized on the couple of dozen coins seen over the past 18 months or so increase already…and by over 25% so far.
If you don’t already own one of these classic Gold Rush rarities, call your Monaco Representative today to check on their availability. I am certain we can, in short order, get you one of these beauties for just $3,300 to $3,500…well under recent auction prices. And if we don’t have one in-house at the time you call…we’ll find you one quickly! So call our special Monaco hotline at 888-900-9948 to get the process started.