Heritage Offers Gold Caesar Coin and ‘Una and the Lion’ Certified by NGC

Great gold rarities from the beginning of the reign of Queen Victoria and immediately after the death of Julius Caesar are among more than 1,000 coins certified by Numismatic Guaranty Company® (NGC®) that are being offered in a Heritage Auctions sale. Bidding is already underway for Heritage's CSNS World Coins Platinum Session and Signature Auction 3115, which is being held May 8-12, 2024.

The top ancient coin in the sale is an Octavian & Divus Julius Caesar c.43 BC Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients Ch XF, 3/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 31042), with an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. The portrait of Julius Caesar is one of the most difficult to acquire among the gold aureus coins featuring the Twelve Caesars, a popular way to collect Roman coins that also includes the first 11 emperors. While silver and bronze coins depicting Julius Caesar are relatively plentiful, gold coins are much more difficult to find. This particular type is the one struck closest to Caesar’s lifetime and was issued by Caesar's grand-nephew and adoptive heir Octavian, who eventually became Emperor Augustus.

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Meanwhile, the top world coin in the sale is a Great Britain 1839 Una and the Lion 5 Sovereign graded NGC PF 62 Ultra Cameo (lot 31217), with an estimate of $150,000 to $250,000. As one of the most coveted and beautiful coins in British numismatics, the Una and the Lion depiction was created by William Wyon in honor of a young Queen Victoria during the earliest years of her reign, which began in 1837. The front shows the bust of the queen, and the famous reverse image is inspired by Edmund Spenser’s poem "The Faerie Queen," showing Queen Victoria as Una guiding a lion.

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Other NGC-certified coins in this auction include:

• a France 1889A Gold 100 Francs graded NGC PF 63 Cameo and pedigreed to the Doctor F. Collection (lot 31177), with an estimate of $95,000 to $100,000
• a Bosporus, Panticapaeum c.340-320 BC Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients MS, 4/5 Strike and 3/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 31020), with an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000
• a France 1894A Gold 100 Francs graded NGC MS 64 PL (lot 31178), with an estimate of $75,000 to $80,000
• a Roman Empire, Pertinax, AD 193 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients Ch MS, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 31090), with an estimate of $70,000 to $80,000
• a Sicily, Syracuse c.405-370 BC Silver Decadrachm graded NGC Ancients AU★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 31005), with an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000
• a Claudius, AD 41-54 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients MS, 4/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 31054), with an estimate of $50,000 to $75,000
• a Vitellius, AD 69 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients AU, 5/5 Strike and 2/5 Surface (lot 31065), with an estimate of $50,000 to $75,000
• a Sicily, Syracuse c.405-400 BC Silver Decadrachm graded NGC Ancients Ch VF, 4/5 Strike and 3/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 31006), with an estimate of $50,000 to $70,000
• a Sweden 1667 Riga 2 Ducat graded NGC MS 62 (lot 31256), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Julius Caesar, d.44 BC Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients MS★, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 31037), with an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000

Estimates are provided by the auction house. The $ symbol represents US Dollars.