Rare U.S. Coin Prototype Sells For Much More Than Expected

Dallas (WBAP/KLIF) – A battered and worn copper coin that was struck by the original U.S. Mint in Philadelphia in 1794, and was a prototype for the then brand new country’s silver dollars and other coins has been auctioned for considerably more than expected. Dallas based Heritage Auctions sold the coin Friday evening for $840,000. The opening bid for the “No Stars Flowing Hair Dollar” as the coin is known was $312,000, and experts thought it might go for as much as half a million. The coin was excavated from the site of the original U.S. Mint sometime before 1876, and was first sold at auction in 1890. It was most recently owned by businessman and Texas Rangers co-chairman Bob Simpson.