David Lawrence Rare Coins Acquires Hall of Fame Collection

David Lawrence Rare Coins of Virginia Beach has purchased one of the most impressive sets of U.S. coins that has ever been assembled. The collection, pieced together by mega-collector Bruce Morelan via Legend Numismatics, was set to be auctioned through Legend Auctions in May. However, in advance of the auction announcement, the set was acquired intact by David Lawrence Rare Coins on behalf of DLRC’s partner, Dell Loy Hansen.

For Bruce, the thrill of the hunt had ended since there were no better coins to include. He had enjoyed the set for many years, even selling it intact to a coin investment fund in 2008. He was later able to purchase it once again before improving it with several additional spectacular specimens. In the end, Morelan felt it was time to pass the coins on for other collectors to enjoy. However, when rumor suggested that a "world class" collection was to be auctioned, John Brush reached out to Legend to inquire about the coins. When they found out that the legendary set was being offered, DLRC and Dell Loy Hansen jumped on the opportunity and the negotiations with Laura Sperber of Legend Numismatics took only a few hours.

“This is simply a group of coins that should not exist. The quality of each of the Seated Dollars is absolutely impeccable, and every single coin was hand-picked for not only condition, but ultimate quality,” says John Brush, President of David Lawrence. “When we found out that the set was going to become available, we acted quickly as we view this as one of the few collections that simply should not be broken apart if at all possible. The sum of all its pieces are so much greater than the individuals, and we wanted to do our part to try to keep it intact. When I notified Mr. Hansen about it, he thought that it was an excellent opportunity and one that we should pursue immediately.”

“If a collector was to own only this set, he or she would own by far one of the greatest collections ever assembled,” remarked Laura Sperber. “There is not a single coin that is anything less than the absolute best in quality and eye appeal by at least a full grade or more, in many cases. With what Dell Loy is trying to accomplish, this monster Hall of Fame set is a perfect fit for his collection. I am thrilled to see it placed with him instead of being broken up. I know he cherishes it and will allow it to be displayed to treat the current and future collecting public. I am sad to see the set go as I have enjoyed exclusively building it for fifteen years. It was certainly a highlight of my career.”

The collection not only houses the finest known pieces of many of the individual dates, but each piece is CAC-certified for quality as well. Of particular interest are the 1851 and 1852 Seated Dollars. The 1851 is graded by PCGS as MS65 and was once part of the legendary Norweb Collection. The 1852 is similarly graded by PCGS and is simply an amazing example of this key date. With coins from the legendary Garrett, Share, Childs, Fairfield, Stack, Hayes, Amon Carter, and Knoxville Collections, this set was put together over many years by some of the most discerning eyes in the coin industry. In fact, many acquisitions were made as part of larger collections to add a single coin to the set. A group that can never be duplicated, this is truly one of the Hall of Fame collections.

DLRC and Dell Loy Hansen are looking forward to exhibiting the collection at several national shows in the near future as part of the holdings of the Hansen Collection.

ABOUT DAVID LAWRENCE RARE COINS

David Lawrence Rare Coins was founded in 1979 by David Lawrence Feigenbaum, in a spare bedroom. A passionate collector his entire life, he made the jump to dealing when his collecting desires surpassed his limited professor’s budget. Dave passed away after a long battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), and Dave’s son, John Feigenbaum took the reins and oversaw the company's growth until 2015. In August of 2015, John became the Publisher of the CDN Publishing and passed operations to John Brush.

Mr. Brush directs the company with the help of an extremely dedicated staff of 17 employees. The management team has a cumulative total of over 80 years with the company and the team of numismatists offer over 125 years of experience. They are deeply passionate about all aspects of coin collecting, and whether the coin is $5, $50 or $5 million, they are here to serve the collector with the best quality, service, and price possible. Brush and the DLRC staff are also equally focused on bringing the latest technology advances to the hobby.

The company has handled legendary rarities of United States numismatics including two examples of the 1894-S Barber dime, a gem 1876-CC twenty cent piece, the finest known 1901-S Barber quarter, two of the 12 known 1870-S Seated dollars, one of the two known 1825/4 $5, and the finest certified 1796 No Pole Liberty Cap half cent. They also helped to assemble and then sell the $25 million Richmond Collection at three public auctions hosted in New York City and Baltimore, Maryland.

David Lawrence Rare Coins is an industry leader in the trading and auctioning of U.S. rare coins certified by PCGS, NGC, and CAC. DLRC holds weekly internet auctions and offers sellers the options of direct sale or consignment to auction. To work with David Lawrence or for any question as to how they can help your collection, please call 1-800-776-0560 or email coins@davidlawrence.com. DLRC is located in Virginia Beach, VA, and offers products via their website, trade shows, Amazon, and on eBay.