A 1787 Brasher Doubloon has made a record $4.5m at Heritage Auctions' US Coins Signature Auction in Orlando Florida.
 The doubloon was produced in 1787 by Ephraim Brasher |
The coin, the highest graded example of the seven in existence, set a new record for a Brasher Doubloon at auction - although the most valuable remains the "Chest Punch" example, which sold privately for $7.3m in 2011.
The doubloons were minted in the late 1700s by Ephraim Brasher, an assayer and jeweller.
Todd Imhof, executive vice president of Heritage Auctions, commented: "The legendary Brasher Doubloon is one of the most important coins in American history because it's the first gold coin struck for the young United States and it's one of only a handful that exist.
"This is a record auction price for one of these historic, early American coins."
The coin had sold previously for $430,000 in 1979 - a per annum increase of 6.9%.
A 1913 Liberty nickel, one of just five known, sold for $3.2m.
 An unknown employee of the US Mint allegedly produced the 1913 Liberty nickels |
Produced in secret at the Philadelphia Mint, the coins surfaced in 1920, and are considered among the rarest and most desirable numismatic items in the US.
This example in particular has captured the public imagination, having featured in an episode of the 1980s TV series Hawaii Five-O.
It achieved an identical figure to the Walton nickel, another of the five, which sold at Heritage in April of last year.
A 1927-D Saint Gaudens Double Eagle also performed well, realising $2m.
We will shortly be bringing you the results for an 1890 Grand Watermelon treasury note and a 1793 one-cent Chain, both of which are due to auction at Heritage later today.
We have a range of investment grade coins available to purchase.
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