A rare 1943-S 1c error coin struck on a bronze planchet was the star lot of Heritage Auctions' February 4-7 Long Beach Expo sale.
 The coin comes from the collection of Texas Rangers baseball club co-chairman Bob Simpson |
It realised $282,000.
The coin was one of a number of pieces to sell from the important Bob Simpson collection.
It's the second finest known of the 1943-S bronze cent errors, which were produced in a run of around 40 - presumably due to miscommunication at the San Francisco branch mint.
As the auction house comments: "Far more important than any technical description of this coin is its high Condition Census ranking as the second-finest 1943-S bronze cent that we can confirm through recent trades.
"As noted, this will remain the finest available 1943-S bronze cent unless and until Bob Simpson decides to dispose of his Registry Set of Mint State 1943-PDS bronze cents, or until the extremely unlikely appearance of another example that trumps both…
"We can confirm only six examples of the 1943-S bronze cents certified by the two major grading and authentication services."
The record for the issue is $1.7m, paid by Simpson for a unique MS64-graded 1943-D bronze cent at Heritage Auctions in 2010.
Other high profile lots included an 1856 nine piece proof set, also from the Bob Simpson collection, which made $199,750.
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