Q. David Bowers
During his auction career from 1940 onward, Abe Kosoff catalogued many properties for sale. Many of the earlier events were public auction with combined in-person and mail participation, but many of the later sales, including those in the Numismatic Gallery Monthly, were mail bid affairs. Which type of sale was best-mail bid or public?
In January 1968, Abe Kosoff discussed the matter in his Coin World column, stating that each method had its advantages and disadvantages:
"One of the big problems involved in conducting a public auction sale is the timing. This problem is brought into sharp focus as the man catalogues pile up on my desk. It is apparent that the cataloguers have tried to avoid conflicting with one another, but it is almost impossible for there to do so. Many convention dates conflict with on another, hence the auction dates must. If a sale is not scheduled in conjunction with a convention then the cataloguer wants to use a Saturday after noon because he thinks the sale will attract more buyers that day, and conventions almost always include Saturdays in their schedules.
"In 1964, by actual count, there were more than 1,200 conventions or shows held in the United States. In many cases, an auction sale of some kind was the feature of the show. This condition is easily overcome by confining the bidding to mail bid only. Timing is then a minor factor.
"B. Max Mehl, who catalogued the most outstanding collections of all time, always had mail bid sales, and he always closed the bidding on a Tuesday. We have generally done the same in our mail bid sales, and for the very same reason that caused Mehl to do so. Tuesday closings permitted the receipt of the weekend mail and left enough time so that the bidding and shipping could be completed during the same calendar week Seldom were any public sales held on a Tuesday hence direct conflict was avoided."
Abe Kosoff went on to say that public sales, b) contrast, have to be scheduled carefully so that important buyers can attend. Sometimes a public sale will result in sharp competition, but those bidding by mail may be more reserved than in a mail bid sale, for they feel that all of the good pieces will be scooped up by floor bidders, he suggested. In conclusion, he noted that proper analysis of the market is necessary to determine whether or not a sale is in order and if it is to be a mail sale or a public auction.
Numismatic Enterprises, Mike Kliman and Steve Kosoff, prepared a catalogue of 1,768 lots for the Numismatic Association of Southern California auction held February 15-18, 1968, at the Statler-Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. The title page noted hat the venture was "assisted by A. Kosoff." Offered was an attractive and varied assortment of United States and world coins in different series.
In March 1968, Abe Kosoff prepared a draft for news release:
"The most important event in the history of coin collecting is in the making, according to an announcement released today by the Merchants National Bank & Trust Company of Indianapolis, Indiana, executors and trustees of the estate of Josiah N. Lilly.
"Paul E. Rawley, senior vice president and trust officer responsible for the liquidation of the multi-million dollar estate, has contracted for the series of Parke-Bernet Galleries of New York City, specialist in conducting auction sales of the finest paintings, jewels, and objects of art.
"To produce a catalogue, Rawley has also contracted with Abe Kosoff, a veteran professional numismatist.
'The collection contains over 6,000 gold coins and includes many unique items. It was offered to the government for $5 1/2 million, but the present financial climate in Washington does not appear to be conducive toward that goal. We expect that a series of auction sales will result in a much higher price being obtained."
The coins in question were put together by Josiah Lilly, an officer of the pharmaceutical firm which bore his name. For many years, Stack's bought for Lilly on a commission basis, acquiring pieces from many different sources. Following Lilly's death, Abe Kosoff and Hans Schulman were selected to appraise and evaluate the holdings. A fixed price appraisal fee was set, meaning that it was not dependent upon the eventual value placed on the collection. Thus, Kosoff and Schulman could truly operate without bias.
Great efforts were made in Congress to have the government grant the Lilly estate favorable tax consideration in exchange for receiving the collection as a donation to be given to the Smithsonian institution. For a year this was bantered back and forth in Washington, with the situation going first me way, then the other. In the meantime, Kosoff and Schulman were busy learning about Lilly and his collection.
"He was not just another rich accumulator," Abe Kosoff wrote. "He was a true collector with a keen curiosity about a number of subjects. He had a fabulous collection of rare books. He had a small but extraordinary collection of rare gems . His stamp collection was probably one of the finest ever assembled. One of his most unusual pursuits was the collecting of military miniatures. Lilly's numismatic holdings, consisting of gold coins and related items, included a number of unique and rare ingots. These furnished the ground for endless research to satisfy the buyer that the Assay company, bank, or other issuer had actually been in business at the place and time stamped on the gold bar. Mr. Lilly studied the fabric of which the ingots were made. He studied the punches to see if they conformed to the known types of the period. He investigated the then current prices for gold to see if the values agreed with the weights and the various prices prevailing on the fluctuating market."
Some of the pieces were old friends to Abe Kosoff. The Kohler gold bars bought at the Farouk sale in Cairo in 1954, one of which had been earlier acquired from F. C. C. Boyd, were familiar, as was the famous 1822 half eagle which earlier had been in the Dunham, Williams, and Carter collections.
An important coin in the Lilly collection was the 1797 half eagle with 16 stars on the obverse and a large eagle on the reverse, a piece believed to be unique, although earlier its unique status had not been fully appreciated. Proof double eagles of the 1880s, $4 stellas, territorial rarities-the cabinet was a numismatist's delight. In the same vein, Hans M.F. Schulman was enthusiastic about the foreign gold coins, his section of the appraisal.