Super-Rare 1913 Nickel Is Coming to Atlanta

ATLANTA, GA (Sep. 19) - The nickel that sold for $4.15 million in late May, and made national headlines this summer, is coming to Georgia October 6-8, to be displayed at the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Atlanta Expo. This super-rare coin has been exhibited only three other times since 2004-once in Florida and twice on the West coast. It is the finest of only five known 1913 nickels with the Liberty Head design.

   Legend Numismatics purchased the nickel for the second-highest price ever paid for a rare coin. "We love the classic rarities, and owning a 1913 Liberty Head nickel is unlike owning any other coin in the world," said Laura Sperber, one of the company's partners.

   The five 1913 Liberty Head nickels have a storied past, starting with Philadelphia Mint Clerk Samuel Brown and others secretly making the coins using Mint equipment. Several years later, Brown ran an advertisement in The Numismatist offering to buy 1913 Liberty Head nickels for $500. He exhibited the nickels at the annual convention of the American Numismatic Association in 1920. It has been speculated that Brown's advertisement from the year before was nothing more than a ploy to validate the existence of the nickels he already owned.

   Today, the 1913 Liberty Head nickels remain the most publicized of all American coins. Texas dealer B. Max Mehl's million-dollar advertising campaign in the 1930s is credited with popularizing these nickels among the general public. From this publicity, Mehl sold thousands of copies of his Star Rare Coin Encyclopedia, which listed prices he would pay for collectible coins.

The last time all five 1913 Liberty Head nickels were sold as a set was in 1942. Afterward, the set was broken up and each coin went its separate way.

   In addition to this and other exciting exhibits, the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Atlanta Expo will feature educational seminars, an auction of rare coins and paper money, a special program for young collectors, and book signings by leading hobby authors. The Expo will be held daily at the Cobb Galleria, October 6-8. Admission and parking are free. For the latest information, visit www.WhitmanExpo.com.