NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: MARCH 1, 2026

Brenner Plaque of Abraham Lincoln

Victor David Brenner
(Lithuanian/American, 1871-1924)

Plaque of Abraham Lincoln, 1907
bronze
14 1/2 x 11 1/4 in.

Inscribed at bottom, "1809 Abraham Lincoln 1865", additionally inscribed at lower right, "V.D. Brenner, Sc."

Victor David Brenner emigrated to the United States from Lithuania in 1890 and immediately enrolled at the Cooper Union to hone his craft as a sculptor and medalist. While working in New York, he became acquainted with Theodore Roosevelt, who posed for Brenner numerous times over the years. Upon winning a second term as president in 1904, Roosevelt sought to modernize the design of American currency, beginning with the penny.

During this time, Brenner began work on a bas-relief of Abraham Lincoln based on a 1864 photograph by Mathew Brady, believing that the centennial of Lincoln's birth in 1909 would be a highly profitable time for high-quality likenesses of the sixteenth president. The first twenty-five plaques produced were made by Brenner himself and bear no additional manufacturing marks. Later versions of Brenner's plaques tend to be smaller and exhibit his mark rather than his signature. The image proved so popular that Teddy Roosevelt requested that Brenner create a scaled-down version for the United States penny; this coin would ultimately be the first to feature the likeness of a former president.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Victor David Brenner (Lithuanian/American, 1871-1924) Plaque of Abraham Lincoln, 1907, bronze (https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/Victor-David-Brenner-Lithuanian-American,-1871-1-148-c-71EAE87737)

$100 Gold Certificate That Became Illegal

The $100 Gold Certificate in lot 7057 of our Spring 2026 U.S. Currency Rarities Night was issued under the Series of 1928 and represents a type that became illegal with a stroke of a pen thanks to the dictates of Executive Order 6102. At the time, A $100 note of any kind represented a large sum of money for the period, these notes had a printed guarantee that one could be exchanged for five gold double eagles (or some other combination of gold coins that were legal tender at the time).

The value alone, however, fails to explain the great rarity of this item, which is one of a population of fewer than 20 examples as a Replacement. Yet that population is largely composed of circulated examples that offer light to even circulation.

To read the complete article and lot description, see:
A Great Rarity of the Twentieth Century (https://stacksbowers.com/a-great-rarity-of-the-twentieth-century/)
Fr. 2405*. 1928 $100 Gold Certificate Star Note. PMG Choice Uncirculated 63 EPQ. (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1QMYU7/fr-2405-1928-100-gold-certificate-star-note-pmg-choice-uncirculated-63-epq)

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web