Unopened box of GSA Dollars

This unopened box of 5 1884-CC GSA dollars sold for $1,255 on ebay on December 17. Any comments? Good price? Too much?

GarryN,

The winning bidder said:

"These will not be opened up as long as I can help it.

It is not about the coin(s). It isn't even about the plastic! It is all about the cardboard wrapping!"

Since the box won't be opened, no one will ever see the coins. Consequently, the grades will never be revealed, which as everyone knows, is how the values are determined.

At $250 per coin, the buyer did pretty well. His downside is $170 per coin—if he opens the box and sees that all coins grade MS-60 to MS-61. If all the coins average MS-63 in grade, the buyer breaks even. If the average grade jumps to MS-64, the buyer makes money. From there, the sky is the limit. He could find MS-65s and MS-66s in the boxes; or coins with pretty colors, or even black and white DMPLs.

The buyer is right, though, the true value in his recent purchase is in the enduring legacy associated with owning an unopened box from the historic GSA sale.

The population of unopened GSA boxes is very low—and getting lower all the time. Fifty years from now, if the popularity of "CC" coins continues to increase, the value of an unopened box of GSA dollars—even the most common date—could be mind-blowing.

There's a nostalgic appeal to this special era between 1972 and 1980. The GSA sales the government conducted during this time catapulted the Carson City Mint and its coins to a higher level of notoriety. Any memorabilia from these sales will be highly valued souvenirs in the future. The more unusual—like unopened boxes—the better.

One of the other items sold by the same eBay seller was almost as appealing: and went for a bargain price, to boot. It was an original canvas coin bag from the Carson City Mint. The winning bidder paid $409.55 plus shipping for it. The bag is heavily stained, but it's got a vintage quality to it.

Below is an image of this bag:

The seller of the unopened box of 1884-CC GSA dollars and the canvas bag is Bryan Sonnier. I always thought he would join the C4OA. He's been collecting GSA dollars and memorabilia for many years, and he has many stories he could share with our members, both on this Web site and in Curry's Chronicle. If any of you spend time on PCGS's Collector's Forum, search for Bryan (gsaguy) and tell him about our club and our Web site. Invite him to join in on the fun.

Someone else who is a prime candidate to get in on our action is the buyer of the unopened box of 1884-CC GSA dollars. He could be like Bob Lindstrom, who shared with us about his ancestors' 1870-CC, silver dollar, and share about what buying the unopened box of GSA dollars means to him. If anyone can track him down, please try to convert him to the C4OA. I'm sure he'll be glad you did, and I know we'll be glad to hear what he has to say.

Rusty

Thats a very good point, Rusty. There is some value to an unopened box. I've never seen one of these boxes before, are we sure there are only '84-CC's in there? I saw the bags. He had a New Orleans bag also. They were in the $150 range when I looked at them.

GarryN,

The label on the side of the unopened box says that 1884-CC dollars are inside. The government makes mistakes all the time, but I've never seen a mis-labeled box of GSA dollars. It seems safe to assume that what you see on the outside is what you will get on the inside.

As for the New Orleans canvas bag, I'm sure someone is interested in it. But as for us, we'll stick with "CC"-related items. ;–)

Has anyone felt the urge to go on PCGS's Collectors Forum and start recruiting members to the C4OA? Some of those guys who participate on that forum and talk about "CC" coins could really benefit from hooking up with our club.

Rusty

I'm much more excited about the Carson City mint bag. That is something that I'd really like to have. I should have put a search notification on ebay. Live and learn.

Merry Christmas and/or Happy Holidays everyone.

Decline Don

Carsonite wrote:

GarryN,

The label on the side of the unopened box says that 1884-CC dollars are inside. The government makes mistakes all the time, but I've never seen a mis-labeled box of GSA dollars. It seems safe to assume that what you see on the outside is what you will get on the inside.

As for the New Orleans canvas bag, I'm sure someone is interested in it. But as for us, we'll stick with "CC"-related items. ;–)

Has anyone felt the urge to go on PCGS's Collectors Forum and start recruiting members to the C4OA? Some of those guys who participate on that forum and talk about "CC" coins could really benefit from hooking up with our club.

Rusty

Rusty-

If you are quoting items from the PCGS board does that mean you started a thread there about this board?