Holabird Greeted May with A Huge, 2,400-Lot 'Mint State' Americana & Numismatics Auction, May 2-5

2025-05-22 08:22:38 Art & Entertainment

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Reno, NV, USA, May 13, 2025 -- Holabird Western Americana Collections, LLC officially ushered in the month of May with a four-day “Mint State” Americana & Numismatics Auction held May 2nd thru May 5th. The first three days were live sessions, held online and live in the Reno gallery. May 5th was a timed-only session; bids could be placed online, in-person or over the phone with an agent.

The auction featured over 2,400 lots in multiple collecting categories, including numismatics (coins, medals, tokens and US Mint ephemera), bottles, mining, minerals, Native Americana, general Americana, toys, militaria, railroadiana, art, stocks and more. Internet bidding was facilitated by iCollector.com, LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com and Auctionzip.com.

The overall top lot of the four days happened on Day 3, with the sale of the three-page, handwritten last will and testament of David Rittenhouse (1732-1796), an astronomer, inventor, clockmaker, surveyor, mathematician, treasurer of the state of Pennsylvania (1777-1789) and first director of the United States Mint (1792-1795). The document gaveled for $8,437.

All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium.

Not far behind, also on Day 3, was a group of previously unseen letters from Dahlonega (Ga.) Branch Mint Superintendent Julius Patton to Jonathan Slocum, regarding Patton's investment and guidance regarding copper mines they owned at Ducktown, Tenn. The letters were dated July 19, 1854; Feb. 8, 1855; July 12, 1855; Sept. 13, 1855; and Dec 15, 1855. The group brought $7,500.

Another star lot, from Day 1, was the late 1800s optical illusion ‘triple’ metal sign for the Brown Shoe Company that hung inside Crescenzo Dry Goods, a business once located in the town of Austin, Nevada, which operated from 1868-1921. The unique design of the 55 inch by 12 ½ inch sign meant it showed different messages when seen from different angles. It was bid to $7,812.

Day 1, on May 2nd, contained 558 lots, featuring bottles (to include examples from the Polak collection); stocks and bonds; and general Americana, to include geographic sort featuring John Muir, maps and books, gaming, general store and furnishings, and miscellaneous categories.

For those unfamiliar, John Muir was the famed 19th century American conservationist known as the “Father of National Parks” and the author of several books on nature. A partial letter written by Muir at a pivotal time (1872) in his professional career and composed in Yosemite Valley, the most important setting in his life, expressing his theological and ecological worldview, hit $531.

A cowboy-themed calendar from 1954 from the Golden Bank Casino in Reno, Nevada, showing a “Harold’s Club”-style cowgirl graphic, 19 inches by 37 inches, nicely framed and in fine-plus condition, changed hands for $3,500. Also, a small color map rendered circa 1685 showing California as an island (“Isle de Californie”), an original copper engraving with later hand-coloring from AM Mallett, 6 ½ inches by 4 ½ inches (map, less the frame), realized $3,000.

A Wells Fargo Express waybill receipt book from 1889 for Carson City, Nevada, containing shipments of nearly everything imaginable, as the Carson City office was the central shipping place involving the Comstock mines, achieved $2,250. Also, stock certificate No. 31, for the Mt. Tamalpais & Muir Woods Railway (in Marin County, Calif.), issued to Ralston L. White for 50 shares in 1914, signed by the railway’s president and secretary, not cancelled, garnered $531.

Day 2, on May 3rd, featured 542 lots of Native Americana; cowboy collectibles; militaria, weaponry and political items; minerals (including fossils and gold specimens); mining (including assay, ephemera and artifacts); and art. One of the top achievers was a Nevada County (Calif.) gold nugget, an old family piece, 41mm long, 1.154 ounces and weighing 36 grams ($3,500).

To learn more about Holabird Western Americana Collections and the firm’s calendar of upcoming auctions, please visit www.holabirdamericana.com. Updates are posted frequently.