Spectacular NGC-certified Chinese Silver Coins Offered in Taisei Auction

Several seldom-seen and highly valuable vintage Chinese coins certified by Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®) are being offered in a sale presented by Taisei Coins and The Royal Mint. Bidding is already underway for the sale, which will be held April 29, 2022, in Japan.

Two weeks before the sale, two of the coins had already achieved bids over ¥70,000,000 (about $550,000). One of them is a China YR16(1927) Chang Tso Lin Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62. NGC recently re-established this coin's pedigree to the Eduard Kann Collection and the Plate Coin in Kann's “Illustrated Catalog of Chinese Coins.” (To learn more about how NGC re-established the pedigree, click here.)

China YR16 (1927) Chang Tso Lin Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62 and pedigreed to the Kann Collection. Click images to enlarge.

The coin (lot 269) depicts Chang Tso Lin, a warlord of Manchuria who eventually gained China's top post in 1927 before being assassinated the next year. His coins are only known through a series of patterns, which generate intense collector interest in the incredibly rare instances that they appear at auction. Two weeks before the sale, this coin had more than tripled its starting price of ¥20,000,000 (about $158,000)

Another coin that has drawn exuberant bidding is a China 1867 Shanghai Tael - With Rays, graded NGC PF 63+ (lot 218). Two weeks before the sale, bidding was more than 15 times its starting price of ¥4,000,000 (about $32,000). This particular coin was struck by the Hong Kong mint and includes both Chinese and British features (including the United Kingdom royal coat of arms). The Chinese government officials rejected the proposed design and nearly all were melted.

China 1867 Shanghai Tael - With Rays graded NGC PF 63+ Click images to enlarge.

Another rare coin in the sale is a China YR29(1903) Tael - Restrike graded NGC MS 63 (lot 219). The coin's obverse depicts a dragon surrounded by the legend 29TH YEAR OF KUANG HSU and HU POO. Kuang Hsu was the Emperor of China from 1875 to 1908, while Hu Poo refers to the monetary authority in Beijing.

China YR29(1903) Tael - L&M-1 Restrike graded NGC MS 63 Click images to enlarge.

The auction includes several highly prized patterns by Luigi Giorgi, the chief engraver at the Tientsin Mint. One is a China 1914 L&M-859 Silver Dollar graded NGC SP 66 (lot 254) and another is a China 1914 L&M-67 Silver Dollar graded NGC SP 61 (lot 255). The patterns show different views of Yuan Shih-kai, leader of China from 1912 to 1916, along with the letters L.GIORGI at 4 o'clock on the obverse.

China 1914 L. Giorgi Silver Dollar graded NGC SP 66 Click images to enlarge.

China YR3(1914) L. Giorgi Silver Dollar graded NGC SP 61 Click images to enlarge.

In addition to the coins highlighted here, the auction includes rarities from Great Britain, including a Henry VII Sovereign hand-struck in gold, as well as other world rarities. To learn more about the British coins in the sale, click here. To learn more about other world rarities, including a gold coin from German New Guinea and an early Japanese Proof Yen, click here.

Other NGC-certified highlights from China in the sale include:

• a China YR21(1932) Silver Pattern Dollar graded NGC MS 60 (lot 278) with a starting price of ¥2,000,000 (about $16,000)
• a China YR12(1923) Small Characters Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 63 (lot 266) with a starting price of ¥1,500,000 (about $12,000)
• a China 1906 Tael Restrike graded NGC MS 64 (lot 220) with a starting price of ¥800,000 (about $6,300)
• a China 1906 Tael graded NGC MS 61 (lot 221) with a starting price of ¥500,000 (about $4,000)
• a China YR3(1914) L. Giorgi Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62 (lot 257) with a starting price of ¥500,000 (about $4,000)
• a China 1928 Memento Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 65 (lot 247) with a starting price of ¥500,000 (about $4,000)
• a China 1907 Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 63 (lot 222) with a starting price of ¥300,000 (about $2,400)
• a China YR12(1923) Large Characters Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62 (lot 267) with a starting price of ¥300,000 (about $2,400)
• a Hong Kong 1866 Plain Edge Silver Dollar graded NGC PF 64 (lot 580) with a starting price of ¥200,000 (about $1,600)
• a China YR38(1949) Bamboo Dollar graded NGC AU Details (lot 280) with a starting price of ¥100,000 (about $800)
• a China 1902 Kirin Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62 (lot 242) with a starting price of ¥20,000 (about $150)

Starting prices are provided by the auction house. The $ symbol represents US Dollars.