The only known Indian Head 5-cent coin struck on a full-size copper planchet sold on eBay for $12,500 Oct. 22.
Seller Mike Byers of Byers Numismatic Corp. said that the coin, graded About Uncirculated 55 by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation of America, is likely a U.S. Mint test piece.
The coin, dated 1920, is struck in an 89 percent copper, 8 percent zinc and 3 percent tin alloy. It weighs 4.96 grams and has the same diameter of a copper-nickel 5-cent coin, 21.21 millimeters.
If the coin were an actual Mint error, instead of a test piece, a strip of alloy meant for another coin would have had to be pressed to the 5-cent coins' thickness, punched into 5-cent coin-size planchets, struck in 5-cent coin dies and released into circulation.
"For all that to happen to be a Mint error, probably isn't likely," Byers said, while pointing out that no other examples of this piece are known.
Byers said that the coin could also have been purposely produced by a Mint employee.
Most test pieces are melted and destroyed at the Mint when they are no longer needed.
The coin had been part of Mike Chambers' U.S. off-metal Mint error collection. When the collection sold, an East Coast pattern, exotic coin and rarity dealer (who wishes to remain anonymous) bought the coin and submitted it to NGC for authentication. Byers bought the coin upon its grading.
The coin was purchased on eBay through its "Buy It Now" option. In this type of auction, the seller sets a price for which the item may be purchased immediately.
Byers said that he is pleased with the coin's realization of $12,500, but after the sale was completed, several people told him that they would have bought the coin at a higher price.
Byers said that the coin's buyer is part of a new wave of collectors who are "not traditional error coin collectors," in that they specialize in collecting errors.
According to Byers, this new type of collector usually collects a specific series and desires a spectacular error from that series to augment his collection.
For more information, contact Byers Numismatic Corp., P.O. Box 687, Lake Forest, CA 92609. Telephone (949) 859-3981 or e-mail BYERSNC@aol.com.
