NGC-graded California Gold Tops Heritage US Coins Auction

1855 Kellogg $50, graded NGC PF 63. Realized: $444,000 Click images to enlarge.

An 1855 Kellogg $50, graded NGC PF 63, was the top lot in the auction, realizing $444,000. It is among the finest-graded of the dozen or so known survivors of an original mintage thought to be only about twice that.

Private firms stepped in during the California Gold Rush to meet the new state's coinage needs. These companies helped fill a void until the San Francisco branch mint opened in 1854 and was able to gain its footing.

Kellogg & Co. and its successor produced $20 gold "slugs" in 1854 and 1855 for circulation. The Kellogg $50 pieces, however, are thought to have been created to showcase the company's ability to produce the same kind of pieces that a competitor was minting.

1851 Humbert "887" With "50" $50. Realized: $360,000 Click images to enlarge.

Another memorable artifact from the Gold Rush era (and minted just a few years earlier), this 1851 Humbert "887" With "50" $50 realized $360,000, the second-highest amount in the auction. Graded NGC MS 63★, this is the finest-known example of this particular version of the octagonal ingots produced by US Assayer Augustus Humbert.

Another gold rarity, an 1864-S $10, graded NGC AU 55, realized $219,004. The only other coin to realize six figures in this auction was also certified by NGC: an 1854 Large Date $20, graded NGC MS 64, that realized $102,000.

To view more results of the Heritage Auctions' US Coins Signature Auction in Chicago, click here.