Denmark 1927-HCN 20 kroner
This specimen was lot 43080 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2026), where it sold for $36,000. The catalog description[1] noted, "The Rarest Date Christian X 20 Kroner, DENMARK. 20 Kroner, 1927. Copenhagen Mint. Christian X. PCGS SPECIMEN-66. Mintmaster: Hans Christian Nielsen (HCN). An EXCESSIVELY RARE date, this issue is certainly the most elusive amongst the quartet of 1926, 1927, 1930 and 1931 dates which comprise the last 20th century gold issues of Denmark. Struck in supreme quality, this piece boasts razor sharp detail through the designs with fields that are highly striated and dazzling due to mindful die polishing. Close inspection of the surfaces yields almost no signs of handling, reflecting a considerate chain of ownership over the generations, with delicate apricot-orange tone complementing the raised central designs as well as the far edges. In all likelihood, the very finest example of this date available for collectors, as this offering reflects the only appearance in well over a decade and of the two graded by PCGS and NGC combined, this example is the finer by a good measure. Altogether, a coin that summits the scales of rarity and quality, making it a prime candidate for the collector that treasures the elite. While the reason for presentation-quality strikes on the never-released dates are not known, it is assumed that a few were made available by the mint for members of the Danish Numismatic Society." This specimen was struck during the reign of Christian X (1912-47). The Scandinavian countries (Norway, Denmark and Sweden) formed their own monetary union in competition with the Latin Monetary Union based on the French twenty francs d'or. Like that union, the Scandinavian Monetary Union lasted until World War One blasted all hard currencies out of existence.
Recorded mintage: 358,000 for 1926-27.
Specification: 8.96 g, 0.900 fine gold, 23 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: Fr-299; KM-817.2; Sieg-3.2.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, January 2026 NYINC Showcase Auction, Ancient and World Coins, featuring the Kazmier Wysocki Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2025.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Siegs Møntcatalog 2016: Danmark med Omrader, 48 ed., Frederikssund, Siegs Forlag ApS, 2015.
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