An extremely rare ten-cent coin that has been missing since the late 1970s has recently resurfaced, sparking renewed interest. It turns out that it has been quietly resting in a bank vault for over 40 years, as an inheritance from a brother to three sisters in Ohio. On Sunday, it was sold for over $500,000, bringing unexpected wealth to the siblings.
The coin was minted by the United States Mint in San Francisco in 1975, featuring the portrait of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. However, the rarity of this coin does not lie in its design. What makes it valuable is the absence of the mint mark “S” representing the San Francisco Mint. There are only two known 1975 ten-cent coins with this particular flaw.
One of these rare coins was inherited by the three sisters in Ohio from their brother. Although they knew the coin had value, they were unsure of its worth.
According to the Associated Press, Ian Russell, the president of GreatCollections, an auction house based in Irvine, California, stated that the coin was sold for $506,250 in an online auction on Sunday, October 27.
In comparison, another known 1975 ten-cent coin without the “S” mint mark was sold at an auction in 2019 for $456,000.
Despite avid coin collectors being aware of the existence of these two rare coins, their whereabouts had been a mystery since the late 1970s.
“They have been hidden for decades,” Russell said. “Most major collectors and dealers have never seen them.”
The three sisters from Ohio informed Russell that their brother and mother purchased the coin in 1978 for $18,200 (equivalent to around $90,000 today). Their parents ran a dairy farm, viewing the coin as a financial safety net.
The United States has produced error coins without the “S” mint mark in several years. According to Fox 10, the years with known mintage of error coins without the “S” mark are 1968, 1970, 1971, 1975, 1983, and 1990. In 1968, there are around 20 to 30 known error coins, while the years 1970, 1971, 1983, and 1990 have several hundred. The case of 1975 is unique, with only two known coins of this type, making them even rarer.