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SEDWICK NOVEMBER 2021 AUCTION 30 SELECTIONSHere's a selection of items that caught my eye in the upcoming Sedwick sale. -Editor 
Lima, Peru, cob 8 escudos, 1710 H, four-digit date, HISPANIAR variety, ex-1715 Fleet, NGC UNC details / obverse scratched, Tauler Plate. S-L25a; KM-38.2; Cal-2117. 26.58 grams. This coin is so well centered on a broad, round flan that in 1992 Frank Sedwick called it "exquisite...its excellence of cut and strike and completeness...as close as we have ever seen to a Philip V Lima 8E Royal." Indeed it is striking to see so much full detail, including all the legend, even the second date in four digits, 1710, without any doubling or weakness or even wear, as this coin clearly did not circulate before it was lost to the sea, which imparted an orangish sheen of sediment on the surfaces, in addition to a tiny patch of white coral in the waves, the only manufacturing demerit being a hairline crack at about 1 o'clock / 4 o'clock. As noted, however, the act of salvage or later handling imparted several areas of light scratches, particularly below the denomination on the pillars side and around the upper-left castle on the cross side.
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Gold bar #17, 878 grams, 15.75 karat, Class 2, marked with tax stamps, karat markings and assayer or foundry cartouche IVAN / P3, ex-Atocha (1622). 8-1/2" x 1-1/4" x 1/2". Large Atocha gold bars are highly sought, especially with lots of markings, and this one is about as complete as you can get, with just one small piece cut from one end in its time (very typical, probably to settle an account or pay a tax). The top surface, which is typically uneven and bears a small, raised knob in the center to which some thick, brown encrustation still clings, shows no fewer than seven partial circular tax stamps, four bold fineness markings consisting of a boxed XV and three dots in a separate box, plus one full cartouche with weak but certain IVAN / P3 that could possibly stand for an assayer named "Juan Perez" (as some paleography studies have shown that what looks like P3 or P with a backwards Z can be shorthand for the name "Perez"), one of the scarcer cartouches seen on such bars. Light yellow color all over with nicely contrasting red color in the markings. Also we note the early style of Treasure Salvors marking (circular) on the bottom (and an early artifact number). A nearly 1-kg bar with a reasonable starting price due to its uncommon sub-16K fineness. From the Atocha (1622), with original Fisher photo-certificate 85A-GB017.
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Brazil (Minas Gerais), 960 reis counterstamp (1809, Joao Prince Regent) on a Potosi, Bolivia, bust 8 reales, Charles IV, 1799 PP, NGC XF 45, c/s UNC strong. Russo-450; KM-242. Broad flan (typical for this host), off-center obverse, very lightly toned, the full counterstamp desirably away from the rims to enable a fully visible host date. NGC #5961757-004.
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Costa Rica, stainless steel 5 centimos, 1967 BCCR, NGC Mint Error MS 65, double struck with second strike off center. KM-184.1a. Frosty luster with faint light blue toning, the bold second strike very much off-center and protruding from the edge, strong die-polish lines on reverse. NGC #4735710-009. Pedigreed to the Tamarindo Collection of Costa Rican Error Coins and Paper Money.
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Guatemala, gold bust 2 escudos, Ferdinand VII, 1808 M, very rare, NGC MS 61, finest and only example in NGC census, ex-Stuart. Cal-1590; KM-70. Lustrous and choice, with all elements of strike perfectly detailed and the fields satin smooth save for a couple trivial marks, first year of a very rare type encompassing just three non-consecutive dates (1808, 1811 and 1817), undergraded in our opinion but without rival in any case, assuredly finest known and with a celebrated pedigree to boot. NGC #4427731-006. Pedigreed to the Richard Stuart collection (stated on special label).
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Japan (Osaka mint), proof 20 sen, Emperor Mutsuhito, Meiji year 13 (1880), extremely rare, NGC PF 62. KM-Y24; JNDA-unl. Flawless strike with faint rainbow toning splashed across the lustrous surfaces, the reverse like a sunset and the dragon on the obverse particularly well defined by the toning, with just a few faint wisps on the mirrored fields but no marks or any evidence of mishandling, a highly important, very low-mintage gem. Drawing comparisons to the famous King of Siam US proof set from the early 1800s, the fourteen-piece Japanese Meiji-13 proof set was similarly used for diplomatic purposes (presumably for presentation to heads of state) and remains surprisingly elusive, as up to 77 sets were reportedly made but no intact sets are known today. The closest to a complete set, eleven pieces, was in the John Pittman collection (David Akers auction of August 1999, lot 5152, acquired from the Farouk sale in 1954), including a box that might have been original, and a second set of eleven (but not all the same denominations as Pittman) was sold at Heritage in January 2017, both setting worldwide records and generating lots of excitement in the world of Japanese numismatics. Each denomination in the set is now a major rarity, the present denomination from a recorded mintage of only 96 pieces (presumably all proofs given as gifts and never meant for circulation) and thought to be unique by Pittman. His example, lacquered and hairlined, is now known to be one of three ever offered for public sale, with the addition of the Heritage example in PF 63, the present one being technically the same grade but with more eye-appeal in our opinion, a historical and numismatic gem for the most advanced collectors in the world. NGC #6268661-001.
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Great Britain, copper alloy Admiral Vernon medal, Vernon and Brown / Satan and Walpole (ca. 1739), ex-Adams, ex-Craige. AC-NLv8G. 35 mm, 9.65 grams. Choice AU+ with hint of luster and original brassy color on fields, very sharp details. AC: "Clearly more a political piece than a historical medal, contrasting the noble heroes on one side with the evil-doing Walpole on the other." The NO EXCISE statement in the exergue on reverse refers to an import tax proposed by Walpole in 1733 that was defeated but then brought up again in 1739, when these Vernon medals were made. Walpole is generally considered the first de facto Prime Minister of Great Britain. XRF: 50.94% copper, 47.37% zinc, 1.30% lead. Pedigreed to the John Adams Collection (with his handwritten tag) and to the Ted Craige Collection. This sale includes Part I of the John Adams Collection of Admiral Vernon Medals. -Editor
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