An unprecedented release. Five Holey Dollars offered for sale, across a broad range of prices, each with a respected provenance. A collaborative exercise between Coinworks and Barrie Winsor that has been many, many months in the planning.
Owning a Holey Dollar is about indulging in an experience, a fusion of history and prestige. And its about savouring the moment. It has been the inspiration and aspiration of many. Think Macquarie Bank and its logo! Museums, the world over. Historians, collectors, investors, both local and international.
This offer is all about seizing the opportunity and matching a Holey Dollar to suit your budget.
In a presentation befitting the coin, each Holey Dollar will be presented in a bespoke case made from Australian timbers, designed and crafted by Anton Gerner. And an individual catalogue will be prepared for each coin, with photographs and detailed information.
This offer is unprecedented. Five Holey Dollars offered for sale, across a broad range of prices.
• The Holey Dollar is priced below $50,000.
• The second and third Holey Dollars are priced at $105,000 and $165,000, the latter a rare Potosi Mint Holey Dollar.
• The fourth coin is a high quality Good Very Fine with fabulous eye appeal and is priced at $225,000.
• And the fifth and final Holey Dollar is an elite piece. The best in its class, it has been exhibited twice in Australia. A rare type of Holey Dollar, with only a few known and this, the finest, priced at $450,000.
The 1813 Holey Dollar is a cultural and financial icon. Its appeal extends far beyond numismatics, driven by its immense historical significance and tangible connection to a foundational moment in Australian history ... when our first coinage was created.
And with less than two hundred available to collectors, the Holey Dollar has prestige value and investment value.
We have tapped into an extensive network to put this offer together, our aim to cater to the widest possible collector audience by offering five Holey Dollars at vastly different price points.
To this end we have worked closely with now retired numismatist, Barrie Winsor. Its no secret in the industry that Barrie Winsor has been a guiding light to many coin professionals. And a mentor to prominent collectors such as Philip Spalding and Tom Hadley of Quartermaster fame, both relying on Winsor to source material.
It has been a pleasure rekindling our numismatic relationship with Barrie, working together to present this extraordinary offer.
Both of us share a passion for Holey Dollars and an even stronger passion for the industry.
Well priced.
Price: $35,000
SOLD
Great eye appeal.
Price: $105,000
SOLD
Rare Potosi Mint.
Price: $165,000
Impressive.
Price: $225,000
Best in its class!
Price: $450,000
SOLD
The Holey Dollar is the nation’s first coin, minted in 1813 by order of Governor Lachlan Macquarie. As Macquarie had no access to metal blanks to create his currency, he improvised and acquired 40,000 Spanish Silver Dollars as a substitute.
To make his new coinage unique to the colony, he employed emancipated convict William Henshall to cut a hole in each Spanish dollar. Each holed dollar was then over-stamped on both sides around the edge of the hole. On one side, the date 1813 and the issuing authority of New South Wales. And the other, the value of Five Shillings.
If you look at the entire process, it is the application of the counter stamps that is the point at which the 1813 Holey Dollar is created. Prior to that, it was just a Spanish dollar with a hole in it!
The 40,000 Spanish Silver Dollars came with different dates and different design details that reflected the reigning Spanish monarch. And they were sourced from various mints around the world, each mint with a different identifying mark. As the Spanish Dollar was an internationally traded coin, most of them came to Macquarie well used. (We know that because the majority of Holey Dollars are well worn.)
As the Holey Dollar was crafted from a Spanish Silver Dollar (and not a metal blank), assessing its value has to give consideration to the original dollar. Its quality. And its rarity. Consideration must also be given to the extent of circulation once the dollar was converted to an 1813 Holey Dollar.
Valuing a Holey Dollar is therefore a multi-faceted process that takes into account seven elements. The date, the monarch and the legend of the original silver dollar. The mint at which the dollar was issued. The quality of that dollar. Now we turn to the counter stamps applied by Henshall. Are they random or precise? And are they worn?
The brief summary above is intended to explain how and why vast price differences can occur with Holey Dollars. Why one can be priced at $35,000 and the other at $425,000.
Owning a Holey Dollar is about indulging in an experience, a fusion of history and prestige. And its about savouring the moment. It has been the inspiration and aspiration of many. Think Macquarie Bank and its logo! Museums, the world over. Historians, collectors, investors, both local and international.
This offer is all about seizing the opportunity and matching a Holey Dollar to suit your budget.
1813 Holey Dollar created from a Spanish Silver Dollar that had been struck at the Mexico Mint in 1803 (Mira/Noble 1803/7).
Price: $35,000
SOLD
A Holey Dollar that has seen harsh treatment but still retains the important design details of the date, legend, mint mark. The counter stamps are also clear, the 'H' for Henshall distinct. Ex Max Stern & Co (1971), then to Philip Spalding.
Design type: 5 (Charles IV legend and portrait)
Date of the silver dollar: 1805
Reigning monarch: Charles IV (1788 - 1808)
Portrait: Charles IV
Legend: Carolus (Charles) IIII
Mint and mint mark: Mexico Mint identified by the 'M' with a small circle above it in the legend on the reverse
Quality of silver dollar : Fine
Quality counter stamps: About Very Fine
Counter stamp dies: II/4: B/4
1813 Holey Dollar created from a Spanish Silver Dollar that had been struck at the Mexico Mint in 1799 (Mira/Noble 1799/4).
Price: $105,000
SOLD
Formerly owned by Ron Stewart and Philip Spalding with strong design detail. Outstanding counter stamps the fleur de lis and 'H' for Henshall distinct.
Design type: 5 (Charles IV legend and portrait)
Date of the silver dollar: 1799
Reigning monarch: Charles IV (1788 - 1808)
Portrait: Charles IV
Legend: Carolus (Charles) IIII
Mint and mint mark: Mexico Mint identified by the 'M' with a small circle above it in the legend on the reverse
Quality of silver dollar: About Very Fine
Quality counter stamps: About Extremely Fine
Counter stamp dies: I/2: A/5
1813 Holey Dollar created from a Spanish Silver Dollar that had been struck at the Potosi Mint, Bolivia, in 1801 (Mira/Noble 1801/5).
Price: $165,000
This Holey Dollar is defined by the rare Potosi Mint. Of the two hundred Holey Dollars held by collectors, sixteen only were created from silver dollars issued at the Potosi Mint. The Schulman name is an extra bonus for this coin, ex Jacques Schulman Sale, Amsterdam, 23 May 1910 (lot 2117).
Design type: 5 (Charles IV legend and portrait)
Date of the silver dollar: 1801
Reigning monarch: Charles IV (1788 - 1808)
Portrait: Charles IV
Legend: Carolus (Charles) IIII
Mint and mint mark: Potosi Mint, idwentified by the PTS monogram in the legend on the reverse said to be the inspiration of the '$' sign.
Quality of silver dollar: Very Fine
Quality counter stamps: Good Very Fine
Counter stamp dies: I/2: A/5
1813 Holey Dollar created from a Spanish Silver Dollar that had been struck at the Mexico Mint in 1804 (Reference Mira/Noble: 1804/8).
Price: $225,000
A high quality Holey Dollar with exceptional eye appeal. As great force had to be exerted on the Spanish Silver Dollar to punch out the central hole. many Holey Dollars are found slightly dished and distorted. With this Holey Dollar, the silver dollar flan is flat and has not been distorted by the cutting process. This is simply a fabulous Holey Dollar, the even shape allowing the design details to be displayed to the max.
Design type: 5 (Charles IV legend and portrait)
Date of the silver dollar: 1804
Reigning monarch: Charles IV (1788 - 1808)
Portrait: Charles IV
Legend: Carolus (Charles) IIII
Mint and mint mark: Mexico Mint identified by the 'M' with a small circle above it in the legend on the reverse
Quality of silver dollar: Good Very Fine
Quality counter stamps: About Extremely Fine
Counter stamp dies: II/4: B/3
The extremely rare Charles III on Charles IV Holey Dollar created from a Spanish Silver Dollar that had been struck at the Mexico Mint in 1790 featuring the portrait of the deceased Charles III and the legend of his son, Carolus IV
Price: $450,000
SOLD
This Holey Dollar is a piece of significance and has been exhibited twice, at the Macquarie Bank in 2013 and the Royal Australian Mint in 2019. Ex Spink London privately from Andre de Clermont in 1989 and now held in a private collection in Perth.
To ensure that the colonial mints could continue their coinage production uninterrupted following the death of King Charles III, a Royal decree granted the mints the right to amend the legend to Carolus IV to acknowledge the new monarch but continue striking coins with the portrait of the deceased king.
This coin is the finest of eight privately held examples depicting the portrait of Charles III and the legend Carolus IV.
Design type: 4 (Charles III on Charles IV Holey Dollar)
Date of the silver dollar: 1790
Reigning monarch: Charles IV (1788 - 1808)
Portrait: Charles III
Legend: Carolus (Charles) IV
Quality of silver dollar : Nearly Extremely Fine
Quality counter stamps: Extremely Fine
Counter stamp dies: I/11: B/7
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