World-Famous King of Siam Coin Set Sells for Record-Shattering Price

By Bruce Amspacher - May 15, 2001

Original 1804 dollar included in the King of Siam Set

The world-famous King of Siam set of coins has sold for an all-time record price well in excess of $4 million. The set, a gift from the United States to the King of Siam 165 years ago, contains one of the eight original "Class 1" 1804 silver dollars along with other numismatic treasures struck in 1834. Spectrum Numismatics International of Irvine, California, sold the set to Mike's Coin Chest of Torrance, California, who purchased it for a client.

"This is certainly one of the most important transactions in the history of numismatics," said Greg Roberts of Spectrum Numismatics. Spectrum acquired the set in 1993, sold it into a major collection, and reacquired it in recent weeks, acting as an agent for the previous owner.

In addition to the original 1804 dollar in the set, other coins include an 1804 Plain 4 $10 gold piece, an 1834 Classic Head $5 gold piece, an 1834 Classic Head $2.50 gold piece, six other 1834-dated Proof coins, and a gold Andrew Jackson medal that was added to the set at a later date. Jackson was President of the United States at the time the coins were struck and later given as a gift to King Ph'ra Nang Klao of Siam in 1836.

The famed set has a rich history. It is believed that four sets were originally assembled as gifts to world dignitaries, but only two were ever delivered before the emissary, agent Edmund Roberts, died. The other sets were returned to the US Mint and eventually broken up.

The King of Siam set was minted sometime in late 1834. Edmund Roberts took it with him on a voyage aboard the USS Peacock in 1835 and arrived in Siam in the Spring of 1836. Included in the sale was the original ship's log from the voyage of the Peacock in 1835. The set was presented to King Ph'ra Nang Klao (also known as Rama III) on April 6 of 1836 and remained in the royal family for generations. Rama IV (King Ph'ra Nang Klao's half brother) followed on the throne, in turn succeeded by Rama V, who died in 1910. It is believed that Anna Leonowens of "Anna and the King of Siam" fame came into possession of the set before her death in 1915. When the set was purchased in London, England, in the 1950s the two women who sold the set were reported to be descendants of Ms. Leonowens.

The set, with its original presentation box still intact, remained in London for the next quarter of a century before being acquired by an American collector in 1979. The fame of the set grew tenfold in 1983 when it was displayed at the Smithsonian Institution. After it was acquired by Spectrum in 1993 it was placed in a private collection. Beginning in April of 1999 the owner allowed it to be displayed as part of the Treasures of Mandalay Museum in the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The 1804 silver dollar carries the nickname of "The King of Coins." This moniker is not something new, but traces its history to an 1885 auction catalog by the Chapman brothers, noted numismatists of their day.

The 1804 $10 gold piece in the King of Siam set is believed to be one of six Proofs struck. This great rarity exhibits the "Plain 4" obverse that differentiates it from the circulation strikes of the same date. As is true of the 1804 silver dollar, the 1804 "Plain 4" $10 is not a restrike, but an antedated original.

The balance of the coins in the set are dated 1834 and represent coins that were being minted at that time. The $10 gold and silver dollar were antedated due to an ambiguous directive that was sent requesting "coins now in use." Silver dollars and $10 gold pieces were still in use but no longer being minted, so the coins were dated from the last known year of prior issue. Unknown to Mint officials at the time was that the silver dollars struck and/or delivered in 1804 were dated 1803. Thus the "King of Coins" was created.

"The King of Siam Proof set is one of the greatest rarities in American Numismatics. PCGS is honored to have certified the coins and we all congratulate the new owner," said Collectors Universe CEO David Hall. The Professional Coin Grading Service graded and authenticated the coins in the King of Siam set many years ago and all of the coins and the medal that were involved in the sale are encapsulated in PCGS holders.

The King of Siam set of coins will be on display at the upcoming Long Beach Coin and Collectibles Exposition on May 31-June 3, 2001.

Bruce Amspacher has been a professional writer since the 1950s and a professional numismatist since the 1960s. He won the OIPA sportswriting award in 1958 and again in 1959, then spent eight years in college studying American Literature. This background somehow led him to become a professional numismatist in 1968. Since then he has published hundreds of articles on rare coins in dozens of publications as well as publishing his own newsletter, the “Bruce Amspacher Investment Report,” for more than a decade. His areas of expertise include Liberty Seated dollars, Morgan and Peace dollars, United States gold coins, sports trivia, Western history, modern literature and the poetry of Emily Dickinson. In 1986 he was a co-founder of the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS).