STEPHEN ALBUM: AUCTION 54 AND ACCUMULATIONS 4

Stephen Album Rare Coins completed two recent auctions, its premier Auction 54 on January 22-25, 2026 and the accompanying Accumulations & Collections Auction 4 on February 23, 2026. The Premier auction brought prices realized of $2.125 million (including buyer's fees) on an estimate of $1.25 million. The sell-through rate was 94.8%. The Accumulations sale brought $473,000 on an estimate of $285,000 and a remarkable sell-through rate of 100%. The firm's Chief Operating Officer commented: "This was our first auction of any kind to sell 100% of the lots. In addition to that the prices that these large lots achieved came as a great surprise to us. This sale format has proven to be very popular among dealers and collectors."

A few highlights from the Premier auction follow (prices before buyer's fees):

LOT 561: ISLAMIC: ASSASSINS AT ALAMUT (BATINID): al-Hasan b. 'Ali b. Sabbâh, 1090-1124, AR dirham (2.46g), Jabal Karim, AH492, A-H1918, cf. Zeno-20235, citing the defeated and executed Fatimid rebel prince Nizar ibn al-Mustansir by his regnal name al-mustafâ li-din Allah at the top of obverse, the Shi'ite kalima in center, with mint/date formula in the margin // Qur'an Sura 112 in the center, qul huwa at the top, verse 9:33 in the margin, some peripheral weakness and fine scratches, one of only two examples known of this type, of great historical and religious significance! VF, RRRR. The only other example of this type was sold in Gorny & Mosch Auction 139, lot 3135 (2005), where the century word was off flan and therefore the date misinterpreted as 591 rather than 491. Both examples bear the cryptic mintname Jabal Karim ("noble mountain"), whose actual location is unclear. Estimated at $15,000-$20,000. Realized $55,000.

LOT 566: ISLAMIC: ASSASSINS AT ALAMUT (BATINID): Muhammad III, 1221-1254, glass weight (16.10g), A-1921W, larger than usual format for an Islamic glass weight with a diameter of 38mm, with the elegantly engraved legend 'alâ / al-dunya wa'l-din / muhammad bin al-hasan / al-mawla al-a'zam, green, mostly translucent, with some light patina; completely unknown and a majestic example, VF-XF, RRRR. ex Ismail al-Imam Collection. Estimated at $15,000-$20,000. Realized $32,500.

LOT 906: WORLD: HUNGARY: Leopold I, 1657-1705, AV 5 ducats (17.31g), Nagybánya, 1803, KM-A257, ÉH-977b, H-1295, mount expertly removed, still an attractive lustrous example of this large gold issue, PCGS graded AU details. Nagybánya today is the city of Baia Mare, in northwestern Romania, located in the historical region of Transylvania. Estimated at $6,000-$8,000. Realized $22,000.

LOT 1205: WORLD: PAKISTAN: Islamic Republic, AV 500 rupees, 1977, KM-49, Centenary of the Birth of Allama Muhammad Iqbal, with original COA and case of issue, PCGS graded PF69 Deep Cameo. Estimated at $800 to $1,000. Realized $17,000.

LOT 1290: CHINA: XIN: Wang Mang, 7-23 AD, AE gold key money (35.12g), H-9.12, yi dao ping wu qian (one knife worth five thousand) with the words yi dao written in gold inlay, minor encrustation, graded 85 by GBCA Grading Company, a lovely example of this rare and popular type! XF, ex Zhao Quanzhi Collection. At that time 5000 Wu Shu was equal to 1/2 cattie of gold. A cattie weighed about 120 grams, so these knives were valued at about 60 grams (2 ounces) of pure gold. We have not been able to find a relative value for gold in ancient China, but in the same time frame in the Roman Empire, two ounces of gold would have been at least a year's wages to an average citizen, thus the problem with this issue. It was fiat currency with a named value very high, but with little intrinsic value. Estimated at $8,000 to $10,000. Realized $13,000.

LOT 1481: CHINA (PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC): AV 150 yuan, 1984, KM-94, Y-60, Chinese Lunar Series - Year of the Rat, the Front Gate in Beijing, NGC graded PF69 Cameo. Estimated at $1,000 to $1,100. Realized $10,500.

LOT 72: ANCIENTS: ROMAN EMPIRE: Titus, as caesar, 77-78 AD, AV aureus (7.11g), Rome, 77-78 AD, RIC-954 (Vespasian), laureate head right, T CAESAR IMP VESPASIANVS // Rome seated right on two oval shields, holding spear in left hand, eagle flying to each side, small she-wolf and twins to right, COS VI, small graffito on reverse, Strike 5/5, Surface 2/5, NGC graded Fine, ex Roma Auction 9, Lot 628. Estimated at $2,500 to $3,000. Realized $4,000.

LOT 718: INDIA: SIKH EMPIRE: AR 1/4 rupee (2.56g), Amritsar, VS1885, KM-18.1, with frozen date VS1885, a rare denomination and an attractive toned nearly mint state example, PCGS graded AU58. Estimated at $1,000 to $1,200. Realized $3,500.

LOT 27: ANCIENTS: BACTRIA: Heliokles I Dikaios, ca. 145-130 BC, AR tetradrachm (16.85g), Bop-1G, diademed and draped bust right // Zeus standing facing, holding winged thunderbolt in right hand and scepter in left hand, monogram to inner left, boldly struck with full details and satiny luster, Strike 5/5, Surface 4/5, NGC graded Choice AU. Estimated at $600 to $800. Realized $3,000.

The firm is now taking consignments for its future Premier and internet auctions.

For more information, see:
Stephen Album Rare Coins (www.stevealbum.com)

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