Additional selections from Larry Rausch’s superb collection of nineteenth and twentieth century error coins will be auctioned in Heritage’s upcoming FUN Signature Auction, to take place January 12 to 15 in Fort Lauderdale. Heritage offered Part One of the Rausch Errors at the recent Pittsburgh ANA Signature Auction. These are the first coins Mr. Rausch has ever sold in a lifetime of collecting.

“Mr. Rausch started collecting at the age of ten, in 1958,” noted Heritage President Greg Rohan. “His father was a vest pocket dealer during the 1960s, and as might be expected of the times, invested heavily in rolls, many of which Mr. Rausch still holds. Every week he searched $50 in cents gathered from parking meters, with several finds nice enough to be mentioned in Coin World. Through his high school years, he accompanied his father to many small shows in the Midwest. He noted the occasional error coin at these shows, and his collection started when he traded with his father for a group of 31 Liberty Seated Dimes (purchased for $34.10 from a collector). Incidentally, he still owns those Liberty Seated Dimes.”

Larry Rausch’s collection of error coins covers obsolete types ranging from Early Quarters and Half Cents to Buffalo Nickels and Mercury Dimes. Many collectors search for years for the kinds of dramatic errors seen in this collection without much success. Perhaps the oddest coin is in Part Two of his collection is an 1856 Three Cent Silver Stuck Over a European Taler. This is a very curious coin with a barely visible date, yet the obverse star is reasonably clear. The design elements of the Taler undertype are clear, with TALER and an oak leaf present on the obverse, while the reverse sports the partial word WAR with an O to the right on the lower portion of the Three Cent Silver design. A curious piece like this can become a great coin to study and show off.



Another truly fascinating coin is a 1923-S Standing Liberty Quarter, graded AU58, and struck 25% off center toward 10 o’clock on the obverse. Standing Liberty Quarter errors are rare to begin with, and to find this combination of a dramatic error and high grade on a key date coin makes it even that much more desirable. The coin has no signs of toning, remaining silvery-white with some luster in the fields. The date is drawn heavily by the off-center striking, but it is obviously a 1923-S. Liberty’s shield is sharply struck, but her head is not present.



The Larry Rausch Collection includes coins of denominations and types ranging from Half Cents to Morgan Dollars, with the types of errors ranging from off-center strikes to wrong planchets. Connoisseurs of error coins will find a wealth of material in this collection to fit their interests.

Other highlights of the Larry Rausch Collection include:


1809 Half Cent, PCGS VG10, 25% Off-Center with rotated reverse

1858 Cent, Small Letters, ANACS G4, 25% Off-Center

1862 Cent, PCGS MS64, 20% Off-Center

1864 Cent, L on Ribbon, PCGS AU53, 5% Off-Center with Rotated Reverse

1865 Cent, PCGS XF45, 50% Off-Center

1874 Cent, PCGS XF40, 20% Off-Center

1906 Cent, PCGS MS63BN, 35% Off-Center

1907 Cent, PCGS MS64BN, 50% Off-Center

Undated Indian Head Cent, PCGS MS64RB, 50% Off-Center

Undated Indian Head Cent, PCGS VF30, 65% Off-Center

1865 Three Cent Nickel, PCGS MS63, 15% Off-Center

1866 Nickel, PCGS F12, 15% Off-Center

1901 Nickel, Struck on Cent Planchet, PCGS MS63BN

1912-D Nickel, PCGS AU55, 7% Off-Center

1918 Nickel, PCGS AU53, 25% Off-Center

1918 Nickel, Struck on Cent Planchet, PCGS AU58BN

1919 Nickel, PCGS MS64, 15% Off-Center

1935 Nickel, Struck on Cent Planchet, PCGS MS65RB

1876 Dime, PCGS AU55, 20% Off-Center

1887 Dime, PCGS MS64, 5% Off-Center

1890 Dime, PCGS MS64, 5% Off-Center

1891 Dime, PCGS MS64, 10% Off-Center

1901 Dime, PCGS AU58, 20% Off-Center

1904 Dime, PCGS AU58, 20% Off-Center

1920 Dime, PCGS MS63, 40% Off-Center

1806 Quarter, PCGS VG8, Misaligned Obverse Die

1838 Bust Quarter, PCGS VF25, 20% Off-Center

Undated Seated Quarter, No Motto (Hubs of 1840-1859, struck in Philadelphia), PCGS XF40, 35% Off-Center

1883-O Silver Dollar, PCGS MS63, 20% Off-Center

















Catalogs for this auction will be available in mid-December. To purchase a catalog, please contact Nicole Jewell, 800-872-6467, 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th Floor, Dallas, TX, 75219.