By CoinWeek Staff

The rare coin market kicked off 2026 with a bang. At the Heritage Auctions FUN Signature Sale, a stunning 1804 Class III Draped Bust Dollar, one of just sixteen known examples of the date, stole the spotlight, hammering at a jaw-dropping $3,538,000. The sale marked the return of the storied Adams-Carter specimen, last seen on the block in 2009 when it sold for $2.3 million.

This wasn’t just a win for one coin. It was a monumental week for the hobby. When the final gavel fell on all sessions, including Ellsworth & Jacobson’s Special Collections and the U.S. Currency Signature® Auction, the combined total surged to $63,386,877.

Let’s break down the highlights from what may be the strongest across-the-board numismatic auction in recent memory.

Few coins in American numisma…

Few coins capture the birth of American private gold coinage like the 1830 Templeton Reid $2.50. Struck in Georgia during the nation’s first gold rush, this quarter eagle stands at the crossroads of frontier ingenuity, constitutional debate, and the urgent need for circulating money.

The example offered in the February 2026 Showcase Auction from Stack’s Bowers Galleries brings that story into sharp focus.

America’s earliest gold discoveries unfolded in the Carolinas at the turn of the 19th century. Soon after, similar geology revealed rich deposits in northern Georgia. As miners poured into Cherokee lands around 1829–1830, raw gold flooded local markets. Yet turning dust and nuggets into spendable money proved difficult and slow.

That gap invited innovation. Temple…

“Clover leaf” Error By Mike Byers for Mint Error News ……

This remarkable “clover leaf” mint error features a Proof Eisenhower Dollar mated planchet set. The error formed when three planchets of different denominations entered the striking chamber at the same time. The set includes two copper-alloy cent planchets and one copper-nickel nickel planchet struck together during a single Proof strike.

Eisenhower Dollars require a large, dollar-sized planchet that fits securely inside the striking collar. In this case, three smaller planchets replaced the correct dollar planchet. Because cent and nickel planchets measure far smaller than a dollar planchet, they could not seat properly within the collar. Instead, the planchets overlapped inside the striking area before the dies closed.