Who Said the Dollar Was Going Down? I knew silver was doing well, but not that well! Possibly the oldest silver dollar in existence, a mint condition 1794 liberty dollar, sold at auction for $7.85 million last week, the highest price ever paid for a coin.
The value of the silver in the coin is about $18. Some 1,578 of the "flowing haired" dollars were struck on a hand cranked press, and only 140 are still known to exist.
The remainder were probably melted down, or lost. Collector Steven L. Contursi sold the coin to the Cardinal Collection Educational Foundation of Sunnyvale, a special purpose entity for another private buyer.
The previous record for the world's most valuable coin has long been held by a 1933 $20 gold piece, once owned by King Farouk of Egypt, and one of a handful issued by the Treasury before Franklin Delano Roosevelt ordered the rest destroyed.
Article courtesy of: The Mad Hedge Fund Trader
