Copyright 2010 – Kimberly Clay

In an auction set for January 3 – 4th at New York’s Waldorf Astoria, a very rare King George V Canadian penny may sell for as much as $300,000.

The penny, an uncirculated 1936 Dot Cent, is one of only three such coins by the Royal Canadian Mint, and one of the most famous of rare Canadian coins. For more than 30 years, the coins were uncollectible as a well-known collector, numismatist John Jay Pittman, had held all three coins in his private collection from 1961 until his death. The coins came back onto the market in the late 1990’s; one in 1997, and the remaining two in 1999.

The pennies were actually minted in 1937 after King George V had died. When his successor, Edward VIII, abdicated the throne to marry twice-divorced Wallis Simpson, an American socialite, the coins were minted without a monarch’s face.

The penny is being sold in a rare coin auction by Heritage Auctions of Dallas, TX and is considered to be the finest of the three King George V coins. Early online bids at this writing already have the price exceeding $160,000.

UPDATE: Penny sold at auction for a whopping $402,500!