Stack’s Bowers Galleries (www.stacksbowers.com) is pleased to announce that Part I of The Teich Family Collection will be crossing the block as part of our the Stack’s Bowers Galleries Official Auction of the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Baltimore Auction to be held November 14-19, 2011 (www.whitmanexpo.com), sure to be one of the great shows of the autumn season.
The name of the Teich Family now joins the illustrious ranks of "name" collections, as Stack’s Bowers Galleries prepares the first in a series of major offerings from the Teich holdings. This old-time family collection has been in private vaults since the 1950s, and has already caused worldwide excitement in the selected previews Stack’s Bowers has hosted at several numismatic shows this year.
The story of how this collection was started is a delight to share. In 1952, while on a family vacation with his wife and three sons, a single Indian Head cent carried by Dr. Samuel Teich fell to the ground and rolled under the counter in view of the owner of a simple rustic motel. This was a magical moment, as the owner, himself a numismatist, then spent the next several hours sharing his collection with the family, and the interest was planted.
Shortly thereafter while on a shopping trip to Gimbel’s in New York City, Dr. Teich and his wife Beatrice stopped by the coin department — and their adventure began. They met Robert Friedberg, bought series coin albums for themselves and their three sons, began learning about American numismatics, and soon purchased from Freidberg some of the rare coins now offered in the Teich Family auction. Not long after, with the help and cooperation of Norman, Morton and Harvey Stack, they learned the finer aspects of numismatics, and began their long standing relationship with Stack’s. They developed into true connoisseurs, and placed emphasis on quality!
Although the entire family caught the collecting bug, and the sons searched through all their pocket change (and still do), as well as thousands of rolls obtained from local banks to find missing items for their albums (key coins of all kinds were in circulation if you were lucky enough to find them, and the search was exciting and tantalizing), emphasis soon shifted to acquiring high-quality classics, dating back to the early 19th century, including Proofs, choice and gem Mint State specimens of many series, and more.
In the 1950s and 1960s, they were bidders and buyers in most of Stack’s auction sales, including famous collections whose names still echo in the halls of numismatics: the Empire Sale of 1957, the Pelletreau Sale of 1959, Milton A. Holmes in 1960, the record-breaking Wolfson Sale in 1962 and many other others.
Over the years, they assembled a museum-quality collection of United States Proof sets from 1854 into the mid-19th century, as well as additional sets of Proofs by series — Indian Head cents, two-cent pieces, three-cent nickel coins, Shield and Liberty nickels, and more.
In parallel the family expanded its collections to include high quality business strikes of Indian and Lincoln cents, Buffalo nickels, Mercury dimes, Standing Liberty and other quarter dollars, 20th century gold, and other specialties. This grand family adventure may have been a unique situation in American numismatics.
Years passed, the sons discussed the family treasure and came to Stack’s Bowers Galleries to disperse the coins that had been locked away — with the hope that they will provide great pleasure to a new generation of enthusiasts and connoisseurs.
The Stack’s Bowers team embarked upon a wonderful adventure as they visited several banks where they opened bank boxes that held the family collection intact, as collected, with original coin flips and holders that had not seen the light of day in over 50 years. The Stack’s Bowers team was enthralled as each envelope was carefully opened, the treasure inside viewed and appreciated, then made ready for transport to the Stack’s Bowers office.
The Teich Collection Part I catalog is now in preparation and printed and online versions will be available in late October. History will be made, and we hope you will be a part of it. For information visit the Stack’s Bowers Galleries website, www.stacksbowers.com.
About Stack’s Bowers Galleries
Stack’s Bowers Galleries, a division of Fortune 500 Company Spectrum Group International, Inc., was launched in January 2011, combining the extraordinary histories of Stack’s, the oldest rare coin auction and retail company in America, with Bowers and Merena Auctions, one of the world’s pre-eminent auctioneers of rare coins and paper money.
The two companies unite to share a combined legacy that spans more than 100 years, and includes the cataloging and sale of many of the most valuable collections to ever cross an auction block — the John. J. Ford, Jr., and Louis E. Eliasberg collections, the Harry W. Bass, Jr., Collection, and the Norweb Collection, to name just a few. Topping off this amazing numismatic history is the inclusion of the world record for the highest price ever realized at auction for a rare coin, the legendary 1933 St. Gaudens Double Eagle which realized an astounding $7.59 million (sold in partnership with Sotheby’s).
The company is headquartered in Irvine, California, with offices in New York, New Hampshire and Hong Kong. Stack’s Bowers Galleries is the Official Auctioneer for several important numismatic conventions, including the ANA World’s Fair of Money and ANA/PNG Pre-Show, and the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Expos in Baltimore, three times yearly, and Philadelphia.
