Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. : Collector Profile

By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
Banker, philanthropist, and coin collector. Born February 12, 1896, in Selma, Alabama. Died February 20, 1976, in Baltimore, Maryland.

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Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. was one of 20th-century America’s most significant coin collectors. Born to Jewish parents on February 12, 1896, in Selma, Alabama, Eliasberg and his family moved to Baltimore when he was just 11 years old. There he remained for the rest of his life. Eliasberg established his own business, the Financial Company of America, at the age of 21 after completing one year of studies at Baltimore City College. He would remain the head of this firm for more than 50 years. While operating his firm, Eliasberg continued his education, studying finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He eventually married R. Lucille Jones and had two sons, Louis, Jr. and Richard.

The Eliasberg Collection

Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. is most known for having complete a date and mint set of every coin struck by the United States Mint. His collection included a contraband 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, which he voluntarily surrendered to the Secret Service. Eliasberg based his pursuit on the list of coins and types published in Charles Elmore Green’s Mint Record and Type Table: United States Coins (1936).

Eliasberg had collected coins since childhood, but grew serious about numismatics in 1926. Author Q. David Bowers writes that Eliasberg began buying coins in the 1920s after a relative presented him with foreign coins he had picked up during a trip abroad. His focus shifted to gold coins after 1933, when the Federal Government recalled all circulating gold but left a carve-out for coins of numismatic interest.

Eliasberg’s pursuit of every U.S. coin would advanced significantly in October 1942, when he made arrangements with Stack’s of New York to purchase the entire John H. Clapp Collection. Clapp, a collector par excellence, held many important rarities and condition-census pieces. For the collection, Eliasberg paid $100,000. He then sold duplicates of the Clapp Collection through Stack’s as the HR Lee Collection. “HR” was his wife’s maiden-name initials and “LEE” stood for “L.E. Eliasberg”. This collection of cast-offs included the iconic 1894-S Barber Dime, an 1879 Stella, and other rarities. The collection brought $94,000.

Some coins required for his collection proved harder to acquire. In 1945, Burdette G. Johnson offered Eliasberg the 1822 half eagle and the unique 1870-S $3 Gold for $20,000. Eliasberg thought this was too much, and turned down the offer, only to buy the 1822 from Harvey Stack a year later for $16,000. He eventually acquired the 1870-S. Eliasberg paid $5,500 for the rare 1854-S Liberty Head Half Eagle in 1946. In February 1949, he purchased the 1841 Proof Quarter Eagle – the final gold coin he needed to complete his gold coin collection.

He wrote the following to B. Max Mehl on February 10, 1949:

“The 1841 quarter eagle, incidentally, is the last gold coin which I had to acquire to complete the regular United States gold series.”

The final coin that Eliasberg needed to complete his collection was the 1873-CC “No Arrows” Liberty Seated Dime, which he purchased on November 7, 1950.

The Eliasberg Collection was exhibited at the Smithsonian Institution from May 1 to August 31, 1960, where it was viewed by more than 1.5 million people. The collection was also publicized in Life magazine as “the greatest collection of United States coins”; in Look magazine: “he [Eliasberg] holds a specimen of every United States coin ever minted, a feat that crowns him king of collectors”; and in Time magazine: “the only complete collection of United States coins belongs to Louis Eliasberg who keeps it in the safe deposit vault.”

The collection got more publicity by being entered into the Guiness Book of World Records. A monograph was published about his collection titled Why, When and How I assembled the Most Complete Collection of United States Coins.

Q. David Bowers visited Eliasberg and studied his collection over the course of a week in 1975 as he prepared the collection for sale. A year later, Eliasberg died at his home in Baltimore. That same year, his collection was displayed at the Philadelphia Mint as part of the National Bicentennial Celebration.

Eliasberg’s gold coin collection was sold to the Gold Coin Corporation of Arizona and then offered by Bowers and Ruddy as the United States Gold Coin Collection. Eliasberg’s collection was well-known, but his heirs did not want the collection associated with their father. Bowers wrote a comprehensive book on the collection with co-author Richard A. Bragg, titled United States Gold Coins: An Illustrated History (1982).

Eliasberg’s gold coins sold for $13.5 million.

Some Noteworthy Coins from the Louis Eliasberg, Sr. Collection

The main focus of the famous Louis Eliasberg, Sr. Collection was the completion of every United States Mint issue by date and mintmark. Eliasberg’s holdings went far beyond that, however, as he was an advanced collector with holdings in world gold and silver coins.

The following is a partial list of noteworthy coins demonstrate the strength of the Eliasberg pedigree in the decades that followed the collection’s historic sale.

Half Cents

1840 Liberty Cap Half Cent Proof

• PCGS PR65RB #5595636: Clapp Estate sold en bloc to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; Eliasberg Estate; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, May 1996, Lot 453; Osipowicz Tadek; Osipowicz Tadek Estate; Heritage Auctions, March 25, 20210, Lot 92 – $48,875.

Large Cents

1798 Draped Bust Cent

• NGC AU58 #508750-001: “The Dr. George French Collection”, B. Max Mehl Fixed Price List, 1929, Lot 178; Henry A. Sternberg, August 1930; T. James Clarke, 1944; B. Max Mehl; “The Frederic W. Geiss Collection”, B. Max Mehl, February 1947, Lot 41; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, May 1996, Lot 507; John MacDonald, August 1999. Wes Rasmussen Collection, by sale, via Denis Loring; August 1999. As NGC AU58 #508750-001. “The Wes Rasmussen Collection”, Heritage auctions, January 13, 2005, Lot 3177 – $29,900. RASMUSSEN on insert. Daniel W. Holmes, Jr.; “The Dan Holmes Collection, Part I”, Goldberg Auctioneers, September 2009, Lot 274, via Larry Hanks; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS MS62BN #32219411. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part V”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, March 31, 2017, Lot 5109 – $56,400. Crossed to PCGS, upgraded from AU58 to MS62. Pogue novelty insert. Eliasberg on insert.

1799 Draped Bust Cent

• PCGS VF25 #4492288: “The William Cutler Atwater Collection”, B. Max Mehl, June 11, 1946, Lot 25 – $237.50; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, May 1996, Lot 509; Stack’s, July 30, 2009, Lot 123 – $31,625; “The Adam Mervis Large Cent Collection”, Heritage Auctions, January 10, 2014, Lot 2699 – $70,500.

Quarter Dollars

1819 Capped Bust Quarter Dollar, B-1

• PCGS MS65 #02824389: St. Louis Coin and Stamp Company, June 4, 1906; John H. Clapp Collection; Clapp Estate; Clapp Collection sold to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr., en bloc, via Stack’s, 1942; Richard A. Eliasberg, by descent, 1976; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1385; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS MS65 #02824389. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part I”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, May 2015, Lot 1060 – $88,125. Pogue novelty insert. Eliasberg on insert. Champagne and goldenrod toning. Only known Mint State example of B-1 variety.

1820 Capped Bust Quarter Dollar, B-1

• PCGS MS66 #03665784: Henry and S. Hudson Chapman, by sale, January 1900; J.M. Clapp Collection; John H. Clapp, by descent; Clapp Estate; Clapp Collection sold to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, en bloc, via Stack’s, 1942; Richard A. Eliasberg, by descent; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1375; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS MS66 #03665784. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part I”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, May 2015 – $99,875.

1822 Proof Capped Bust Quarter Dollar, B-1

• PCGS PR67 #31385753: Thomas Cleneay Collection, before 1887; “The Thomas Cleneay Collection”, Henry and S. Hudson Chapman, December 1890, Lot 1333; John G. Mills; “The John G. Mills Collection”, Henry and S. Hudson Chapman, April 1904, Lot 995; J.M. Clapp; John H. Clapp, by descent; Clapp Estate; Clapp Collection sold, en bloc, to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, via Stack’s, 1942; Richard A. Eliasberg, by descent; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1384. As NGC PF68. Superior Galleries, March 2000, Lot 325; Dr. Gene Sherman, by sale, September 18, 2000; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS PR67 #31385753. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part I”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, May 2015, Lot 1068 – $246,750. Pogue novelty insert. Eliasberg on insert. Mottled pale toning with blue and gold toning along the periphery.

1825/4/2 Capped Bust Quarter Dollar

• PCGS MS66 #05823969: Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, before 1976; Richard A. Eliasberg, by descent; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1389; Heritage’s sale of September 1997, Lot 7016; Dr. Juan XII Soros Collection; “The Dr. Juan XII Soros Collection”, Superior Galleries, February 1999, Lot 140; Bowers and Merena, November 2001, Lot 6208; Karl and Sarah Hirtzinger, by sale, March 9, 2002; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS MS66 #05823969. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part I”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, May 2015, Lot 1074 – $52,875.

1838 Capped Bust Quarter Dollar

• PCGS MS65 #08792924: David S. Wilson; John H. Clapp, via S. Hudson Chapman, by sale, 1906 (speculative); John H. Clapp Estate; Clapp Collection purchased by Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, en bloc, via Stack’s, 1942; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1418; unknown dealer intermediaries; purchased by a dealer, August 2003; D. Brent Pogue Family. As PCGS MS65 #08792924. “The D. Brent Pogue Family Collection, Part I”, Stack’s Bowers / Sotheby’s, May 2015, Lot 1094 – $35,250. Pogue Novelty insert. Eliasberg on insert. Pedigree research assisted by Stack’s Bowers.

Half Dollars

1810 Capped Bust Half Dollar, O-108

NGC MS66 #6329480-007: “George H. Earle Collection”, Henry Chapman, June 1912, Lot 2860; John H. Clapp; Clapp Estate; Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 1712; Joseph C. Thomas Collection; Heritage Auctions, April 2009, Lot 3407; Heritage Auctions, April 2009, Lot 3407; Heritage Auctions, August 2022, Lot 3932 – $22,200; Heritage Auctions, July 20, 2023, Lot 3056 – $21,600.

Silver Dollars

1853 Liberty Seated Dollar PCGS MS64

• PCGS MS64 CAC #25624667: As NGC MS64 CAC #355453-002. “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection,” Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 2221; Heritage Auctions, January 6, 2011, Lot 5632 – $11,155. As PCGS MS64 CAC #2564667. Heritage Auctions, August 10, 2016, Lot 4192 – $12,925; Heritage Auctions, August 2, 2017, Lot 4028 – $11,162.50. Crusty reddish-brown hue throughout. OC-1.

Half Eagles

1910 Indian Head Quarter Eagle Proof

• PCGS PR66 CAC #81098378: Philadelphia Mint; acquired by John H. Clapp, April 1910; Clapp Collection to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr., en bloc, via Stack’s, 1942; “The Eliasberg United States Gold Coin Collection”, Bowers and Ruddy, October 1982, Lot 625. As PCGS PR66 CAC #81098378. “The Kiev Collection”, Stack’s Bowers, August 11, 2016, Lot 3272 – $58,750. Eliasberg on insert.

Double Eagles

1907 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, Ultra High Relief

• PCGS PR69 #46094669: Thomas Elder, November 1920, Lot 1755b; John H. Clapp; Clapp estate; Clapp Collection sold to Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr., en bloc, via Stack’s, 1942; Eliasberg estate; “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. United States Gold Coin Collection”, Bowers and Ruddy, October 1982, Lot 1021 – $242,000; Mike Brownlee; Harry W. Bass, Jr. As PCGS PR69 #46094669. “The Harry W. Bass, Jr. Core Collection, Part IV”, August 10, 2023, Lot 9082 – $4,320,000.

1915-S Panama-Pacific Exposition Half Dollar

• PCGS MS67 #25681310: “The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection”, Bowers and Merena, April 1997, Lot 2409; Heritage Auctions, October 2016, Lot 3378; Heritage Auctions, May 2022, Lot 4516; Heritage Auctions, July 20, 2023, Lot 3785 – $4,200.

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