#47-The Amazing 1804 Draped Bust Silver Dollar

"Very many of the rare coins which now enrich other Cabinets were by great solicitation obtained from me. My facilities for collecting coins were remarkably good..." Matthew A. Stickney

T.J.

Aug 18, 2024

Hope you are having a great weekend!

It took an entire team of coin collecting experts over one hundred years to solve the mystery of the 1804 Draped Bust silver dollar.

Why were they so rare?

Who created them, and when?

How was anyone able to acquire these rare coins?

Our latest episode looks at, “The King of American Coins," the 1804 silver dollar, and the creators story behind the amazing coin.

With the help of an amazing book titled, "The Rare Silver Dollars Dated 1804 and the Exciting Adventures of Edmund Roberts," written by the legendary coin expert, Q. David Bowers.

Or, here’s the Apple Podcast link -

Hope you enjoy it!

Three Thoughts -

Here’s a few interesting things I learned this week while searching for the world’s greatest collectibles.

#1 - Gerald Genta

The Master of Creating Beauty -

Gerald Genta is the mastermind designer behind some of the most iconic watches ever made.

- the Royal Oak from Audemars Piguet
- the Nautilus from Patek Philippe
- the Constellation from Omega

He’s been called the “Fabergé of watches.”

In 1984, one watch publication explains the impact Gerald Genta made -

“The brick Mr Genta threw into the quiet pond of high-level Swiss horology was a large one. For the first time, one of its members had been bold enough to turn standard values upside down…”

When he died in 2011 he left his wife over 4,300 drawings of mostly unseen watch designs.

He’s been called one of the most influential people in the history of horology.

#2 - The McLaren F1

Gordon Murray knew exactly what he wanted.

But when he built the McLaren F1, many of his requirements for the ultimate GT road car were thought to be impossible, so he would need to invent a way.

For example, he would need electric Kevlar fans for increased downforce, a six-piece titanium throttle pedal, and an engine bay wrapped in 24k gold as a heat shield.

Even the one-plus-two seat configuration, a concept Murray had been thinking about since he was 16 years-old, would pose almost absurd engineering challenges.

Not only did Murray have insane technical problems to solve, he didn't even have a blueprint from other great car designers.

Murray confessed, "I started by driving the cars known then as "supercars." The Porsche 959, Bugatti EB110, Ferrari F40, Jaguar XJ220. Unfortunately, none of these cars fit the pattern of the supercar we were trying to build."

Then, during a visit to Honda's Tochigi Research Center, Murray spotted a prototype parked in the corner of the test track. It was the Honda NSX.

"The moment I drove the little NSX, all the benchmark cars - Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini - I had been using as references in the development of my car vanished from my mind."

Murray took the greatness of the Honda NSX, and with the McLaren F1, went beyond - to levels nobody could have imagined.

With only 106 cars produced and an original sale price of $1 million in 1998, McLaren F1s now sell at auction for more than $20 million.

Almost 30 years later, the admiration and prestige of Gordon Murray's McLaren F1 continues to accelerate.

#3 - The Mickey Mantle Rookie Card

While the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle steals the thunder, don’t forget about the 1951 Bowman. It’s the official Mickey Mantle rookie.

And there's only one PSA 10 graded Bowman Mickey Mantle rookie card.

The 1952 Topps Mantle include three PSA 10 graded cards.

So the question is which one is more valuable? We already know collector Ken Kendrick owns two 1952 Topps PSA 10 cards, and collector Marshall Fogel owns the third PSA 10.

But the 1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle rookie card? Once owned by ex-pro ballplayer Tom Candiotti, it's been in the hands of Ken Kendrick, owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Kendrick's entire baseball card collection is valued at $100 million. But what would the 1951 Bowman Mantle rookie card sell for today?

$12.6 million is what the 1952 Topps Mantle card sold for in 2022 with an SGC grade of 9.5.

I'm going to say the only PSA 10 Bowman Mantle rookie card is more valuable than one of the three PSA 10 1952 Topps Mantle cards.

Would you agree?