Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio announces the conclusion of their Spring 2025 Hong Kong (SAR) Auction, which spanned seven days and included over 7,600 lots of coins, medals, tokens, and currency. The auction exceeded expectations, realizing over $21.8 million versus the pre-sale high estimate of just over $19.5 million. The results again showcased the market leadership for which Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio is known and signaled a strengthening Asian market. All prices include the buyer’s premium.
Chinese Coins in Stack’s Bowers Hong Kong Rarities Night
The highly-anticipated Rarities Night featured vintage Chinese treasures, with many items greatly outpacing their estimates. The catalog cover coin (lot 40185), featuring Chang Tso-lin the “Mukden Tiger,” achieved the sale’s highest realization at $1,020,000. Other highlights included the gold Dragon and Peacock 20 Dollars (lot 40070), which sold for $396,000, as well as the Gold K’uping Tael (lot 40155), which garnered $528,000. A gold striking of the Pavilion Dollar (lot 40159), sold for $384,000, while a magnificent example of the “Seven Three Reversed Pattern” Dollar (lot 40057), brought $660,000—more than four times its low estimate. The session, which comprised 218 coins, reached an impressive total of $12,361,020.
World Coins and Beyond
Beyond the Rarities Night session, a massive gold 10 Tael Ingot (lot 41050) garnered $66,000 and a Hong Kong Pattern Dollar that once belonged to Sir Hercules Robinson, the Fifth Governor of Hong Kong (lot 42092), realized $102,000. From the Philippines, an exceptionally rare 1903-S 50 Centavos (lot 42552), reached $55,200, while from the Netherlands East Indies, a mysterious emergency issue 48 Stivers (lot 42494), sold for $26,400.
Stack’s Bowers Hong Kong World Paper Money Sessions
Sessions offering World Paper Money also performed well, as the total of all lots sold reached $3,559,461, just short of the department’s previous record. An immense rarity, the Yu Chuan Honan Official Bank Tael (lot 30483) realized $60,000, and a pair of $10,000 Yuan front and back specimens from the People’s Republic of China (lot 31059) brought $55,200. A note from the popular Russo-Asiatic Bank (lot 30407) sold for $45,600, and one from the German-Asiatic Bank (lot 30282) reached $43,200.
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Stack’s Bowers Galleries is currently accepting consignments to the 2025 Summer Global Showcase Auction and the Fall 2025 Hong Kong (SAR) Auction, as well as other live and online sales. To include your numismatic items in any of the firm’s upcoming events, contact Stack’s Bowers Galleries at 800-458-464 or [email protected].
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