Stack’s Bowers Galleries Announces Part I Of The L. E. Bruun Collection Of Scandinavian Coinage

Costa Mesa, CA – Stack’s Bowers Galleries proudly announces auction details for Part I of the L. E. Bruun Collection, the world’s finest private collection of Scandinavian coinage, which has been insured for 500 million Danish kroner (about US$72.5 million). This inaugural auction will be held September 14, 2024 at Odd Fellow Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Nearly 300 gold and silver rarities from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, will be featured in this debut offering from Bruun’s 20,000-piece collection. The coins to be offered stretch from the late 15^th century to within a few years of Bruun’s death in the early 20^th century, and are valued at over US$10 million.

Beginning in the late 19^th century, Lars Emil Bruun, better known as L. E. Bruun, amassed his fortune from the sale and export of countless millions of tins of world-renowned Danish butter. He invested some of that fortune in real estate on the outskirts of Copenhagen, which saw a marked rise in value as the population of Copenhagen tripled from 1890 and 1920. These business successes allowed him to expand the modest coin collection he had begun as a boy in the 1850s into the world’s greatest private collection of the coins, medals and paper money of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. When the final coin from the Bruun Collection has been auctioned off, this cabinet will stand as the most valuable collection of international coins ever to have been sold.

Bruun, who passed away on November 21, 1923, left behind not only an impressive estate, but also an unusual destiny for his coin collection. Having seen the destruction wreaked by World War I, and keenly aware that the British bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807 had destroyed nearly the entirety of the Danish capital, L. E. Bruun formulated a unique and innovative will and testament: his collection of over 20,000 coins, medals, tokens, and notes would be held as a reserve for the Royal Danish Coin and Medal Collection for a period of 100 years after his death. If the Royal Collection was damaged or stolen during that century, the L. E. Bruun Collection would become a gift to the Danish state. But if the Royal Collection remained intact, the collection would be sold at auction, with the proceeds benefitting Bruun’s direct descendants. On November 21, 2023, that 100-year waiting period ran out, and with the Royal Danish Coin and Medal Collection intact, L. E. Bruun’s fantastic collection of Danish, Norwegian and Swedish numismatics became destined for the auction block. Stack’s Bowers Galleries will bring the collection to market through several public auctions over the coming years, beginning September 14, 2024 in Bruun’s native Copenhagen.

(left): Danish gold noble of King John dated 1496, the sole privately owned example of the first gold coin of Denmark and the first coin from the Danish kingdom to bear a date. Graded About Uncirculated-55 by Numismatic Guaranty Company.

(right): The famous 1661 Akershus silver double speciedaler of Norway, the only known example of this commemorative issue celebrating the Norwegians pledging allegiance to the Danish king Frederik III at the castle-fortress of Akershus in Christiania (Oslo). Graded About Uncirculated-58 by Numismatic Guaranty Company.

The inaugural Bruun auction has been curated to include a balanced array of history, quality, and rarity. “Hands-down my favorite piece in the sale is the 1496 gold noble of King Hans, who was king of Denmark and Norway under the Kalmar Union, as well as Sweden for a brief time. It is important on so many levels—it’s the very first gold coin struck by Denmark, it’s the very first dated coin struck by the Danish kingdom, and it’s unique in private hands,” commented Matt Orsini, Director of World and Ancient Numismatics at Stack’s Bowers Galleries. He continued, “Many large gold coins from this era have been melted down over the centuries or have been damaged from use in jewelry. This one is quite pristine and has been assigned a grade of About Uncriculated-55 – on a scale that goes to 70 – by Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC). Everyone is going to want to own this prize, so I would not be surprised to see it sell for US$1 million or more on auction night.”

“Large gold coins are genuinely rare in Scandinavia, but the discovery of a huge silver deposit at Kongsberg in Norway in 1623 meant that domestically mined silver could be used to produce quantities of speciedalers, large silver coins about one ounce in weight and 1.5 inches in diameter. Norway minted speciedalers continuously from the 1620s through the 19^th century, occasionally making examples of double, triple, or even quadruple weight,” commented Vicken Yegparian, Vice President of Numismatics at Stack’s Bowers Galleries. He added: “In 1661, a very special double speciedaler was minted to commemorate the Norwegians swearing allegiance to King Frederick III of Denmark, which occurred on August 15, 1661 in Akershus Castle at Christiania (Oslo).  The reverse of the coin depicts a clearly recognizable bird’s eye view of the castle and fortress, which still stands today.  Graded About Uncirculated-58 by NGC, Bruun’s is the only privately owned specimen. It’s an absolute trophy among his Norwegian coins and will be contested by collectors the world over seeking to add this historic, beautiful, and unique coin to their cabinets.”

These are just two of the nearly 300 diverse coins offered in Part I of the Bruun Collection, with select highlights to be exhibited at coin fairs around the globe in the months leading up to the auction. The entirety of PartI will be on exhibition in Stack’s Bowers Galleries’ California and New York City galleries, at the American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money in Chicago, Illinois, and in the firm’s Hong Kong gallery before going on display in Copenhagen immediately preceding the September 14 auction. Please visit www.StacksBowers.com/the-L-E-Bruun-Collection for additional information and to view a full online preview of the auction after June 1. For catalog requests or inquiries about the Bruun auctions, telephone +1 949.253.0916 or email info@StacksBowers.com.