波士頓非法鑄幣廠出品的 1652 年三便士剛剛以 250 萬美元的價格售出，成為有史以來最有價值的非金幣

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A nickel-sized coin comprising only $1.03 worth of silver just sold for $2,520,000, making it the most expensive piece of American currency predating the Revolution, and the most valuable non-gold U.S. coin struck before the 1792 founding of the United States Mint. It’s also the first time that a 1652 threepence piece from Boston’s illicit inaugural mint has ever gone up for grabs.

一枚鎳幣大小的硬幣僅含價值1.03 美元的白銀，剛剛以2,520,000 美元的價格售出，使其成為獨立戰爭之前最昂貴的美國貨幣，也是1792 年美國造幣廠成立之前鑄造的最有價值的非金幣。這也是來自波士頓第一家非法造幣廠的 1652 年三便士硬幣首次被拍賣。

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Stack’s Bowers Galleries auctioned this rare specimen off amongst their Numismatic Americana & Early American Coins sale in Costa Mesa, CA yesterday. Several collectors competed over this seminal souvenir of American revolt, struck 124 years before the Declaration of Independence.

昨天，斯塔克鮑爾斯畫廊 (Stack's Bowers Galleries) 在加州科斯塔梅薩舉行的美國錢幣和早期美國硬幣拍賣會上拍賣了這枚罕見的標本。幾位收藏家競相爭奪這件美國反抗運動的開創性紀念品，它是在《獨立宣言》發表前 124 年創作的。

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England wanted its colonies to remain dependent on its own coinage, and curtailed the currency entering America. In response, the General Court of Massachusetts Bay ordered the creation of a Boston Mint in 1652, and elected silversmith John Hull to oversee it. Bostonians brought counterfeit coins, silverware, and more to be smithed. Hull took a percentage of each ounce converted into coins, and Americans turned their silver into cash. The Crown, still recovering from the English Civil War, only got wise to the operation in 1660.

英國希望其殖民地繼續依賴自己的鑄幣，並限制了貨幣進入美洲。作為回應，馬薩諸塞灣普通法院於 1652 年下令建立波士頓造幣廠，並選舉銀匠約翰·赫爾 (John Hull) 負責監督。波士頓人帶來了假幣、銀器等可供鍛造的物品。赫爾將每盎司的一定比例兌換成硬幣，而美國人則將白銀兌換成現金。直到 1660 年，英國王室才從英國內戰的影響中恢復過來，才意識到這次行動。

This 1652 threepence was in production between May and October 1652, when the General Court mandated a new design to stop thieves from stealing slivers of these coins, thereby reducing their literal value. Of the three coins the Hull Mint made within this period—including the shilling, the sixpence, and the threepence—the latter remains the rarest. It was the smallest denomination on offer, but took the same amount of effort as the other two, rendering it tedious and less valuable to Hull, who was paid by the ounce. By comparison, two 1652 shillings also appeared in last night sale, hammering at $60,000 and $192,000.

這枚 1652 年三便士於 1652 年 5 月至 10 月期間生產，當時普通法院強制要求採用新設計，以防止竊賊偷走這些硬幣的碎片，從而降低其字面價值。在赫爾鑄幣廠在此期間製造的三種硬幣中（包括先令、六便士和三便士），後者仍然是最稀有的。這是所提供的最小面額，但與其他兩種面額相同，這使得它變得乏味且對赫爾來說不那麼有價值，因為赫爾是按盎司支付的。相比之下，昨晚的拍賣中也出現了兩枚1,652先令的硬幣，成交價為60,000美元和192,000美元。

The coin, with the Roman numeral indicating its denomination up top. Image: Stack’s Bowers.

硬幣，頂部有羅馬數字指示其面額。圖：Stack's Bowers。

Before this 1652 threepence surfaced, only two examples had ever been known. New England historian William Sumner Appleton bequeathed one to the New England Historical society in 1903. This new copy is purportedly in better condition. Another example lived at Yale until it was stolen in the 1960s. That coin has not been recovered.

在這枚 1652 年三便士面世之前，人們只知道兩枚硬幣。新英格蘭歷史學家威廉·薩姆納·阿普爾頓 (William Sumner Appleton) 於 1903 年將一本遺贈給新英格蘭歷史學會。另一個例子曾在耶魯大學保存，直到 20 世紀 60 年代被盜。那枚硬幣尚未被追回。

Last night’s specimen originally emerged from an old cabinet in a Netherlands residence in 2016. It was found in a now-lost pasteboard box inscribed “Silver token unknown / From Quincy Family / B. Ma. Dec. 1798” in an “early 19th century hand,” the lot explains. The PCGS verified the coin in 2020.

昨晚的標本最初是2016 年從荷蘭一處住宅的一個舊櫃子裡發現的。 。拍品上解釋說，「1798 年 12 月」出自「19 世紀早期之手」。 PCGS 於 2020 年驗證了該硬幣。

American coins quickly became a European novelty. Based on the lost box’s inscription and surviving letters from the early 1780s, this surprising specimen likely arrived on the continent via John Adams, who served as American ambassador to the Netherlands before becoming America’s second president. Adams was married to Abigail Adams, a descendant of the illustrious Quincys, whose great grandfather was step brothers with Hull.

美國硬幣很快就成為歐洲的新奇事物。根據丟失盒子上的銘文和1780 年代初倖存的信件，這個令人驚訝的標本可能是通過約翰·亞當斯(John Adams) 抵達非洲大陸的，約翰·亞當斯在成為美國第二任總統之前曾擔任美國駐荷蘭大使。亞當斯的丈夫阿比蓋爾·亞當斯是著名昆西家族的後裔，其曾祖父是赫爾的繼兄弟。

Yesterday marks the 58th time Bower’s Stacks sold a coin for more than a million. Over email, Stack’s Bowers EVP Christine Karstedt told me their house has noticed an uptick in such sales, “as the U.S. market continues to see strong growth and other markets begin to mature.”

昨天是 Bower's Stacks 第 58 次以超過 100 萬美元的價格出售硬幣。 Stack 的 Bowers 執行副總裁 Christine Karstedt 透過電子郵件告訴我，他們的公司已經注意到此類銷售額的上升，“因為美國市場繼續強勁增長，而其他市場開始成熟。”

“Regarding this coin,” she added, “there are no rumors of additional specimens.”

“關於這枚硬幣，”她補充道，“沒有任何關於更多樣本的傳言。”