Costa Mesa, CA (March 14, 2022) – Stack’s Bowers Galleries is proud to present an exciting selection of physical bitcoins and other cryptocurrency in their Spring 2022 Showcase Auction, the Official Auction for the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo. The sale will feature an array of Bitcoin and Litecoin from the popular Lealana and Casascius series, all certified and encapsulated by PCGS. Also included are several unloaded and redeemed coins that remain very popular as keepsakes of this exciting technology.
This is poised to be the largest and most diverse offering of physical cryptocurrency ever by a major auction house, confirming Stack’s Bowers Galleries as a market leader among today’s expanding community of collectors. The 500% premium realized by a Lealana 0.1 Bitcoin in the firm’s November 2021 sale indicated tremendous excitement for this new category, and strong premiums are expected from crypto collectors and traditional numismatists alike in this April offering.
The selection of Casascius coins is highlighted by a 2013 1 Bitcoin and a 2013 0.5 Bitcoin that were purchased directly from Mike Caldwell, the creator of the series, as part of original rolls of coins. They are accompanied by two of the historic 2011 Casascius Error 1 Bitcoin pieces, which are important as the first funded physical bitcoin ever produced, according to researcher Elias Ahonen’s Encyclopedia of Physical Bitcoins and other Crypto-Currencies. Included in this pair is a MS-66 (PCGS) specimen that ranks as the sole finest of just five at PCGS.
The Lealana coins are spotlighted by a scarce four-coin set of silver 2013 Lealana bitcoins. The coins will be offered individually in consecutive lots, though an advanced collector could potentially acquire all four coins and keep the set intact. Included are a 0.1 BTC graded Proof-70 Deep Cameo (PCGS), a 0.25 BTC graded Proof-69 Deep Cameo (PCGS), a 0.5 BTC graded Proof-70 Deep Cameo (PCGS), and an important gold-plated 1 BTC graded Proof-69 Deep Cameo (PCGS). The last is described by specialist Elias Ahonen as “perhaps the most visually interesting” issue from this series. Each coin is marked with the serial number 24, making it one of the earliest sets issued by Lealana creator Noah Luis, aka “smoothie.”
Stack’s Bowers Galleries is also excited to offer their clients the ability to pay for their purchases with Bitcoin. The firm has arranged with BitPay to facilitate all Bitcoin payments and a 1% fee will be added to all invoices for this service. Additional terms and conditions apply, and bidders are required to contact Stack’s Bowers Galleries before the sale with any questions relating to payment via BitPay. Clients who would like to settle an invoice via BitPay must contact the firm’s accounting department to arrange for a payment request.
This historic offering of cryptocurrency coins will be presented at the end of the Stack’s Bowers Galleries Rarities Night session, which opens for live bidding at 2:00 PM PT on Tuesday, April 5. The entire Rarities Night session is now available for viewing and pre-bidding at the firm’s website. For more information about this offering of physical cryptocurrency or to consign your cryptocurrency to a future sale, contact Stack’s Bowers Galleries at consign@stacksbowers.com or 800-566-2580.
About Stack’s Bowers Galleries
Stack’s Bowers Galleries conducts live, Internet and specialized auctions of rare U.S. and world coins and currency and ancient coins, as well as direct sales through retail and wholesale channels. The company’s 85-year legacy includes the cataloging and sale of many of the most valuable United States coin and currency collections to ever cross an auction block — The D. Brent Pogue Collection, The John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection, The Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, The Joel R. Anderson Collection, The Norweb Collection, The Cardinal Collection and The Battle Born Collection — to name just a few. World coin and currency collections include The Pinnacle Collection, The Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection of World Gold Coins, The Kroisos Collection, The Alicia and Sidney Belzberg Collection, The Wa She Wong Collection, and The Thos. H. Law Collection.
The company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, with offices in New York, Philadelphia, Wolfeboro, Hong Kong, and Paris. Stack’s Bowers Galleries is an Official Auctioneer for several important numismatic conventions, including American Numismatic Association events, the New York International Numismatic Convention, the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Spring, Summer and Winter Expos, and its April and August Hong Kong Auctions.
