Over a Dozen Times, NGC-certified Coins Topped $1 Million in 2021

Over a dozen times, coins certified by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation® (NGC®) realized prices over $1 million at auctions in 2021. They include a Brasher Doubloon that realized $9.36 million, which at the time was a record for any gold coin sold at auction.

The table below listing the seven-figure coin sales can be sorted automatically by clicking on the column headers. Click on the name of the coin to jump to an image and description of that coin, or keep scrolling to see all of the coins.

NGC-certified Coins That Realized Seven Figures in 2021

The coin: 1787 'EB' on Wing New York Style Brasher Doubloon The grade: NGC MS 65★ The pedigree: Donald G. Partrick Collection The sale price: $9.36 million Why it's special: The centerpiece of the Partrick Collection, this coin realized a record $9.36 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in January 2021. Brasher Doubloons were the first gold coins struck in the newly independent United States. Only nine are known, with this one being the finest. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1907 Extremely High Relief, Lettered Edge $20 The grade: NGC PF 68 The pedigree: The Paramount Collection The sale price: $3.6 million Why it's special: These initial specimens of the inaugural Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle reign as some of the most-prized artifacts in all of US coinage. Only about 20 are known in Extremely High Relief. This was the focal point of the US coins portion of the ambitious Paramount Collection. It realized $3.6 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in February 2021. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: Russia 1825 Constantine Rouble The grade: NGC PF 62 The pedigree: Joseph/Richter, Spassky Plate The sale price: $2.64 million Why it's special: This Russian coin set the record for most expensive world coin in a Stack's Bowers auction when it realized $2.64 million in April 2021. It was struck for Constantine, who was expected to become emperor after his brother’s death in 1825 but refused to take the throne. Only eight of these coins are known, including three in museums. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: Great Britain 1937 Edward VIII Pattern 5 Sovereign The grade: NGC PF 67 Ultra Cameo The pedigree: The Paramount Collection The sale price: $2.45 million Why it's special: This coin realized $2.28 million at a Heritage sale in March 2021, and then $2.45 million at an MDC Monaco sale in October, breaking the record for a British coin at auction. After his father died in January 1936, Edward VIII became king, but he abdicated in December to marry a divorced American socialite. A small number of Edward VIII patterns for coins are cherished as some of the greatest rarities in British numismatics. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: YR 17 (1928) China Pattern Silver Dollar The grade: NGC MS 62 The sale price: $2.16 million Why it's special: This coin realized $2.16 million at a Heritage sale in December 2021, the second-highest price paid for any vintage Chinese coin. This pattern shows Zhang Zuolin, also known as the "Mukden Tiger." A warlord of Manchuria, he gained the presidency in June 1927 and ruled for just under a year before he was driven from power and assassinated. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1786 Lima-Style Brasher Doubloon The grade: NGC MS 61 The pedigree: Donald G. Partrick Collection The sale price: $2.1 million Why it's special: Brasher Doubloons take their name from the man who created them, renowned New York City gold and silversmith Ephraim Brasher. This particular example, a Lima-Style that imitates a Spanish gold coin, realized $2.1 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in January 2021. In the same sale, a New York-Style realized a record $9.36 million. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1921 Roman Finish Double Eagle The grade: NGC PF 64+ The sale price: $2.01 million Why it's special: This coin was struck at a time when the US Mint was overhauling the nation’s coinage and experimenting with different finishes. Double Eagle Proofs were believed to have ended with the 1915 issue until two with the 1921 date showed up at auctions in the early 2000s. The finer of the two known, this coin realized $2.01 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in August 2021. The other example is believed to have been given by the Mint Director to his nephew. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1880 Coiled Hair Stella The grade: NGC PF 67 Cameo The pedigree: Paramount Collection The sale price: $1.86 million Why it's special: These $4 gold coins were meant to compete in international trade with European coins of similar worth, but only a few hundred patterns were struck before the experiment was canceled. Versions exist dated 1879 and 1880, with the Liberty head on the obverse sporting either coiled hair or flowing hair. The 1880 Coiled Hair is the rarest, with only nine known to exist. This one realized $1.86 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in February 2021. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1839 Great Britain "Una and the Lion" 5 Sovereign The grade: NGC PF 66★ Ultra Cameo The sale price: $1.44 million Why it's special: The finest-graded “Una and the Lion” 5 Sovereign realized a record $1.44 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in August 2021. These coins were struck to celebrate the ascension of the young Queen Victoria to the throne. The design is inspired by Edmund Spenser’s 1590 poem “The Faerie Queene” and is widely considered to be the most beautiful of British coins. This example also earned NGC's trademarked Star (★) Designation in recognition of its exquisite eye appeal. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: China (1911) Long Whiskered Dragon Silver Dollar The grade: NGC MS 64 The pedigree: NC Collection The sale price: $1.34 million Why it's special: The NGC-graded NC Collection realized $18 million at a Champion Macau auction in May 2021, a record for a Chinese collection at auction. This Long Whiskered Dragon realized $1.34 million in that sale. It is the finest-known example of a much-admired coin designed by famed coin designer Luigi Giorgi. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1792 Judd-13 Pattern Quarter The grade: NGC AU 58 The sale price: $1.26 million Why it's special: This particular example, one of only four known, realized $1.26 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in April 2021, its first appearance at public auction. It was struck in the early 1790s as the US Mint was preparing to roll out a national coinage. Though this pattern was not used for circulating coinage, certain elements of its design are echoed in the first quarters issued a few years later. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: YR 23 (1911) China Long Whiskered Dragon Silver Dollar The grade: NGC PF 63 The sale price: $1.2 million Why it's special: This coin realized $1.2 million at a Heritage sale in December 2021, the NGC-certified second Long-Whiskered Dragon to realize seven figures in 2021. Struck right before the end of China's Imperial era, this high-grade coin features renowned engraver Luigi Giorgi's beloved dragon design on the obverse. Giorgi went on to design some of the most important coins of China's Republic era. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: 1776 Silver Continental Dollar The grade: NGC VF 35 The pedigree: Romano and Partrick Collections The sale price: $1.14 million Why it's special: With their powerful designs and all-important “1776” date, Continental Dollars comprise a highly prized niche of early American numismatics. Only four are known in silver; all are NGC-certified and each has now realized a price over $1 million, including this one, which sold for $1.14 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in April 2021. Learn more: Click here.

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The coin: YR 33 (1907) Chihli Tael The grade: NGC MS 63 The pedigree: NC Collection The sale price: $1.1 million Why it's special: This is one of the finest known and one of the most coveted of the Chinese Dragon Tael series. The coin flew past its estimate of $200,000 to $400,000 to realize $1.1 million at a Champion Macau auction in May 2021. The NC Collection featured coins that are among the most desirable in Chinese numismatics, carefully collected by one of China’s most famous families. Learn more: Click here.