The most expensive $1 coin in the United States is worth 10 million dollars
Take a closer look at your spare change in case you have a rare specimen. The most expensive one-dollar coin in history sold for more than $10 million.
Millions of dollars, whether in coins or bills, circulate daily throughout the country. Most are generally only worth their face value; that is, 1 cent coins are only worth 1 cent, and so on. However, some specimens can sell for thousands and even millions of dollars to collectors if they meet certain characteristics.
According to currency website US First Exchange, the value of a coin or bill is determined based on three main factors: rarity, the condition/grade of the coin or bill, and market conditions or demand for it. The combination of these three factors determines whether a coin or bill is worth more or less money.
There are currently some pieces in circulation that are worth tens, hundreds of dollars or thousands of dollars. However, certain specimens can be worth much more. For example, in 2013, a $1 coin sold for more than $10 million.
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The 1-dollar coin worth more than $10 million
A rare 1794 silver dollar, believed to be one of the first to be minted by the United States Mint, holds the record for the most expensive one-dollar coin in history.
This specimen, known as “Flowing Hair”, features a portrait of Lady Liberty on one side and an eagle on the other. It sold for more than $10 million in 2013, breaking the world record at the time for the most ever paid for a rare coin.
However, this coin was relegated to second most expensive coin when the 1933 gold “Double Eagle” sold for $18.9 million in 2021.
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What makes the Flowing Hair coin unique
“Lady Liberty’s curls show incredible definition, even in their highest relief above Liberty’s ear, just as the feathers of the eagle that show all the fine nuances,” notes Stack’s Bowers, the oldest auction house for rare coins in the United States.
Bruce Morelan, an American businessman who likes to collect coins, paid $10,016,875 for the “flowing hair silver dollar” more than ten years ago. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Nevada businessman in turn sold the piece in 2022 to the auction house GreatCollections based in Irvine, California, for $12 million.