Rare Israeli 1960 One Agura Coin Sells for Over $33,000
Translated & summarized from Calcalist by baba
A rare 1960 Israeli one agura coin, a trial version, sold for over $33,000 including fees at an Ira & Larry Goldberg auction. Only about ten such coins exist, featuring a specific grain count on ears of wheat. This price is a significant increase from its value of around $6,000 twenty years ago. The coin is distinct from more common 1960 one agura coins, which are valued much lower.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- A rare 1960 Israeli one agura coin sold for over $33,000 including buyer's premium.
- Only about ten examples of this specific trial version of the one agura coin are known to exist.
- The coin's high value is due to a design discrepancy with the Bank of Israel's final specifications.
- This coin sold for significantly more than a similar one fetched twenty years ago for $6,000.
- It is distinct from more common 1960 one agura coins valued at around $500.
A rare Israeli one agura coin from 1960 (Hebrew year 5760) was sold at auction for $27,500, with the buyer's premium bringing the total cost to approximately $33,700 (around 104,000 shekels). The auction was held online by Ira & Larry Goldberg auction house. This specific coin is an extremely rare trial version of the one agura coin, with only about ten known examples in existence. The standard historical one agura coin features three ears of wheat. The Bank of Israel had commissioned these coins from a company in Birmingham, England. The original design intended for the left ear of wheat to have eight grains, matching the other two ears. However, the bank's design committee later decided the left ear should have ten grains. Consequently, only a few coins with eight grains on all three ears were produced. Records of previous auctions show a similar coin selling for about $6,000 twenty years ago. It is important not to confuse this rare coin with the more common one agura coin from the same year, which has a large "5760" imprint. While also considered rare, hundreds of these exist and are valued significantly lower, selling for around $500 in February 2023. Regular one agura coins from that period are valued at approximately 15 shekels per kilogram, as about 13 million were minted.