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NYINC Signature Sale 3097 10 Jan 2022
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French Colonies
Louis XIV 15 Sols (1/4 Ecu) 1670-A XF45 NGC, Paris mint, KM-Unl., Br-501 (R6), LeRoux-250 (R10), Zay, Histoire monétaire des colonies françaises, pg. 41, 1, Breen-255 (Very Rare), Hodder, "An American Collector's Guide to the Coins of Nouvelle France," 4, Martin-1.1-A.1, VG-1, Maz-1, Gad-3, Lec-187a, Robins-Unl. Type II. Dies 1-A (F above curl, pellet after TVI). The undisputed "king" of the French colonial series, and a coin which has for over a century been considered a true treasure every time one has become available. The largest denomination minted for France's New World territories, the 15 Sols or 1/4 Ecu was first prescribed in a February 1670 ordinance issued by Louis XIV, who on March 24 authorized the mintage of 100,000 Livres worth of silver and copper coinage for use in "the islands and mainland of America." Though scholarship has historically suggested that these issues were meant to circulate in Acadia, Newfoundland, the territories of New France, and the French West Indies "to facilitate commerce," as hypothesized by Alfred Sandham in 1868, period documents indicate that they were probably more intended for the West Indies alone. Founded in 1664 by Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the French West India Company had for years been anxious to introduce a subsidiary coinage to pay day laborers and artisans, who had mainly been paid in goods. Despite an issue of around 41,569 15 Sols (Lecompte rounds the mintage to an even 40,000), owing to their small circulation sphere and the fact that such coins could not be used to buy goods in France, and subsequent rejection by local merchants, most of the initial mintage was subsequently melted, leaving few to survive to the present day. As late as 1885, New York dealer Edouard Frossard, then in communication with French numismatist Émile Zay, reported that even the National Collection in France did not contain an example. At the present time, we are only aware of around 17 surviving specimens (possibly 1 or 2 of which may be duplicates) in addition to the current piece, 8 of which are in museum collections and thus permanently unavailable to commerce:
1) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 1 (1963.0046.00026.000). W.W.C. Wilson Collection (Wayte Raymond 1925, Lot 371); George Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman June 1914, Lot 2321); George Parsons Collection (Edouard Frossard October 1885, Lot 460) [unsold] = Illustrated on pg. 6 of the 73rd edition of the Charlton Standard Catalog.
2) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 2 (1965.0136.05025.000). Edouard Frossard 26th Sale (May 1882, Lot 610)
3) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 3 (1974.0151.02507.000)
4) The British Museum specimen (1935,0401.10498). Donated to the British Museum by Thomas Bryan Clarke-Thornhill in 1935
5) The Bibliothèque Nationale specimen. Émile Zay Collection = Maz-1 Plate Coin = Gad-3 Plate Coin = Lec-187 Plate Coin
6) The ANS Museum specimen (1968.235.1). Reportedly ex. Norweb and Tennant = Hodder-4 Plate Coin
7) The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation specimen. John L. Roper II Collection (Stack's December 1983, Lot 181)
8) The Smithsonian Institution specimen (2003.0087.0001). Donated to the Smithsonian by Edwin Rector; Bowers & Merena Rarities Sale (August 1996, Lot 1); Privately purchased by James Charlton c. 1964
9) The Henry P. Kendall Foundation specimen. Stack's Bowers (March 2015, Lot 2494); Purchased from the Donald Groves [Partrick] Collection by Lester Merkin; Donald Groves Collection (Stack's November 1974, Lot 382); Fred Baldwin Collection (New Netherlands Coin Company Sale 53, April 1960, Lot 1) = Breen-255 Plate Coin. Certified VF35 by PCGS
10) The Garrett Collection, Part 3 specimen. Bowers & Ruddy (October 1980, Lot 1297); Col. James W. Ellsworth Collection
11) Henry Chapman's 1908 ANA Convention Sale (September 1908, Lot 168); Georg F. Ulex Collection (Adolph Hess May 1908, Lot 6)
12) The Donald G. Partrick specimen. Heritage Auction #1330 (March 2021, Lot 15007); McKay-Clements Collection (Frank Rose May 1976, Lot 1); John J. Ford, Jr.; Purchased from the 1964 ANA Sale by J. Guy Clements; Federal Brand's 1964 ANA Convention Sale (August 1964, Lot 1500); Count Ferrari Collection. Certified VF30 by NGC.
13) The John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, Part XIII specimen. Stack's (January 2006, Lot 23); Purchased from A. H. Balwin & Sons on 12 October 1973; Owen Parsons; Olive Lloyd-Baker; Archbishop Sharp Collection
14) The Harald Salvesen specimen. Spink Zürich Auction 28 (October 1988, Lot 65); Superior (October 1977, Lot 131)
15) Private Collection in Quebec City. Sold to a collector in Montreal in 2019, who traded it to a collector in Quebec City in 2021; MDC Monaco Auction 4 (November 2018, Lot 1185); Purchased by Montreal coin dealer, Mike Joffre. Certified G04 by PCGS
16) Laurens Schulman Auction 8 (April 1997, Lot 1572)
17) Editions V. Gadoury (November 2019, Lot 722). Certified XF45 by NGC.
Notably, neither the Gerald E. Hart, W.H. Hunter, nor the Doug Robins collections contained an example. Known from two main die pairs, the vast majority of surviving representatives show low-quality strikes from fatigued dies on poorly made and heavily adjusted planchets. Though flan adjustments occur towards the center of the obverse and reverse of this specimen alike, a remarkable care of engraving is on full display in both the peripheral and central features, the devices appearing comparatively well-centered with nearly full edge denticles. Presently outranked by just a single AU53 at PCGS, we fully expect the offering to excite spirited bidding as it changes hands for the first time in decades.
Ex. Argenor Numismatique (April 2000, Lot 379)
https://coins.ha.com/itm/french-colonies/french-colonies-louis-xiv-15-sols-1-4-ecu-1670-a-xf45-ngc-/a/3097-30191.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3097-01102022
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD
Louis XIV 15 Sols (1/4 Ecu) 1670-A XF45 NGC, Paris mint, KM-Unl., Br-501 (R6), LeRoux-250 (R10), Zay, Histoire monétaire des colonies françaises, pg. 41, 1, Breen-255 (Very Rare), Hodder, "An American Collector's Guide to the Coins of Nouvelle France," 4, Martin-1.1-A.1, VG-1, Maz-1, Gad-3, Lec-187a, Robins-Unl. Type II. Dies 1-A (F above curl, pellet after TVI). The undisputed "king" of the French colonial series, and a coin which has for over a century been considered a true treasure every time one has become available. The largest denomination minted for France's New World territories, the 15 Sols or 1/4 Ecu was first prescribed in a February 1670 ordinance issued by Louis XIV, who on March 24 authorized the mintage of 100,000 Livres worth of silver and copper coinage for use in "the islands and mainland of America." Though scholarship has historically suggested that these issues were meant to circulate in Acadia, Newfoundland, the territories of New France, and the French West Indies "to facilitate commerce," as hypothesized by Alfred Sandham in 1868, period documents indicate that they were probably more intended for the West Indies alone. Founded in 1664 by Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the French West India Company had for years been anxious to introduce a subsidiary coinage to pay day laborers and artisans, who had mainly been paid in goods. Despite an issue of around 41,569 15 Sols (Lecompte rounds the mintage to an even 40,000), owing to their small circulation sphere and the fact that such coins could not be used to buy goods in France, and subsequent rejection by local merchants, most of the initial mintage was subsequently melted, leaving few to survive to the present day. As late as 1885, New York dealer Edouard Frossard, then in communication with French numismatist Émile Zay, reported that even the National Collection in France did not contain an example. At the present time, we are only aware of around 17 surviving specimens (possibly 1 or 2 of which may be duplicates) in addition to the current piece, 8 of which are in museum collections and thus permanently unavailable to commerce:
1) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 1 (1963.0046.00026.000). W.W.C. Wilson Collection (Wayte Raymond 1925, Lot 371); George Parsons Collection (Henry Chapman June 1914, Lot 2321); George Parsons Collection (Edouard Frossard October 1885, Lot 460) [unsold] = Illustrated on pg. 6 of the 73rd edition of the Charlton Standard Catalog.
2) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 2 (1965.0136.05025.000). Edouard Frossard 26th Sale (May 1882, Lot 610)
3) The National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada specimen no. 3 (1974.0151.02507.000)
4) The British Museum specimen (1935,0401.10498). Donated to the British Museum by Thomas Bryan Clarke-Thornhill in 1935
5) The Bibliothèque Nationale specimen. Émile Zay Collection = Maz-1 Plate Coin = Gad-3 Plate Coin = Lec-187 Plate Coin
6) The ANS Museum specimen (1968.235.1). Reportedly ex. Norweb and Tennant = Hodder-4 Plate Coin
7) The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation specimen. John L. Roper II Collection (Stack's December 1983, Lot 181)
8) The Smithsonian Institution specimen (2003.0087.0001). Donated to the Smithsonian by Edwin Rector; Bowers & Merena Rarities Sale (August 1996, Lot 1); Privately purchased by James Charlton c. 1964
9) The Henry P. Kendall Foundation specimen. Stack's Bowers (March 2015, Lot 2494); Purchased from the Donald Groves [Partrick] Collection by Lester Merkin; Donald Groves Collection (Stack's November 1974, Lot 382); Fred Baldwin Collection (New Netherlands Coin Company Sale 53, April 1960, Lot 1) = Breen-255 Plate Coin. Certified VF35 by PCGS
10) The Garrett Collection, Part 3 specimen. Bowers & Ruddy (October 1980, Lot 1297); Col. James W. Ellsworth Collection
11) Henry Chapman's 1908 ANA Convention Sale (September 1908, Lot 168); Georg F. Ulex Collection (Adolph Hess May 1908, Lot 6)
12) The Donald G. Partrick specimen. Heritage Auction #1330 (March 2021, Lot 15007); McKay-Clements Collection (Frank Rose May 1976, Lot 1); John J. Ford, Jr.; Purchased from the 1964 ANA Sale by J. Guy Clements; Federal Brand's 1964 ANA Convention Sale (August 1964, Lot 1500); Count Ferrari Collection. Certified VF30 by NGC.
13) The John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, Part XIII specimen. Stack's (January 2006, Lot 23); Purchased from A. H. Balwin & Sons on 12 October 1973; Owen Parsons; Olive Lloyd-Baker; Archbishop Sharp Collection
14) The Harald Salvesen specimen. Spink Zürich Auction 28 (October 1988, Lot 65); Superior (October 1977, Lot 131)
15) Private Collection in Quebec City. Sold to a collector in Montreal in 2019, who traded it to a collector in Quebec City in 2021; MDC Monaco Auction 4 (November 2018, Lot 1185); Purchased by Montreal coin dealer, Mike Joffre. Certified G04 by PCGS
16) Laurens Schulman Auction 8 (April 1997, Lot 1572)
17) Editions V. Gadoury (November 2019, Lot 722). Certified XF45 by NGC.
Notably, neither the Gerald E. Hart, W.H. Hunter, nor the Doug Robins collections contained an example. Known from two main die pairs, the vast majority of surviving representatives show low-quality strikes from fatigued dies on poorly made and heavily adjusted planchets. Though flan adjustments occur towards the center of the obverse and reverse of this specimen alike, a remarkable care of engraving is on full display in both the peripheral and central features, the devices appearing comparatively well-centered with nearly full edge denticles. Presently outranked by just a single AU53 at PCGS, we fully expect the offering to excite spirited bidding as it changes hands for the first time in decades.
Ex. Argenor Numismatique (April 2000, Lot 379)
https://coins.ha.com/itm/french-colonies/french-colonies-louis-xiv-15-sols-1-4-ecu-1670-a-xf45-ngc-/a/3097-30191.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3097-01102022
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD