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ra Goldberg has been a professional numismatist for over 45 years. He currently co-owns and operates Ira and Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles, Inc. in Beverly Hills, California. In the company’s June 1, 1999 auction, a World Record was set as a $20 gold 1907 Ultra High Relief hammered for $1, 210,000, becoming the first ggold old coin ever to realize over one million dollars at public auction. Prior to the formation of his own company in 1998, Mr. Goldberg served as Vice President of Superior, an A-Mark Co. (1994-1998), and prior to 1994, as owner and President of Superior Stamp and Coin Company (Beverly Hills, CA), which, at that time, was one of the largest numismatic and philatelic auction houses in the world; it was founded by Mr. Goldberg’s grandfather in 1931. Ira is a widely recognized expert on United States coinage from Colonials through Modern issues; he is also a widelyrespected authority on ancient Greek, Roman and Judean coinages and antiquities, as well as world gold, world crowns and minors. In addition, Mr. Goldberg has given lectures on a variety of numismatic subjects to coin clubs and numismatic organizations. He has also written feature articles for The Numismatist, Coin World, Numismatic News, The Manuscript Society, and other industry publications, and has been a contributor for many years to two of the most important numismatic reference books in the industry: The Guide Book of United States Coins (“The Red Book”) and The Handbook of United States Coins (“The Blue Book”). In the field of ancient coins, he is a consultant and contributor to A Guide to Biblical Coins and, with Larry Goldberg, co-edited Money of the World - Coins that Made History (Whitman), a book which won the NLG Award for Best World Coin Book for 2008. Ira Goldberg is a licensed and bonded auctioneer in California and New York, and is an expert cataloger. He has served as consultant and advisor to many famous personalities such as Buddy Ebsen, Joshua Heifetz, and Los Angeles Lakers’ owner Jerry Buss, building and selling numismatic collections for them, and he has handled America’s single most important numismatic item, the King of Siam Set, three different times – once privately and twice at auction. In 2008, the King of Siam Set brought a record-breaking $8.5 million. On May 28, 2009, Ira and Larry Goldberg auctioned The Millennia Collection, which realized over $24 million, the most a World Coin Auction has brought in a single day. Ira served on the board of directors of the Professional Numismatic Guild (member #153) for the maximum tenyear limit and as its President (1993-1995). He has also served on various committees for the American Numismatic Association, in addition to serving as an authenticator for their authentication service. Mr. Goldberg is a life member of the American Numismatic Association (LM-838), the Numismatic Literary Guild, the Manuscript Society, and other trade organizations. He has acted as a consultant to the Columbus-America Discovery Group regarding the find
aboard the S.S. Central America, to date the largest recovery of United States gold coins of any treasure salvage operation, and is a partner in the California Gold Marketing Group, the entity responsible for the sale of the treasure. In addition, Mr. Goldberg is responsible for his company’s successful ventures into other areas of the collectibles business. He has expertise in such diverse fields as historical manuscripts, Hollywood and sports memorabilia, animation art, modern and antique jewelry, and selected areas of fine art. Ira Goldberg has also been an appraiser for many of the major banks and insurance companies in California. He has appeared as an expert witness, both in deposition and in court, numerous times, including appearances as appointee of the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Service, and the I.R.S. He currently teaches “Coins that Made History” at the ANA Summer Seminar. On Thursday, January 6th, 2011, Ira received a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Numismatic Society, for his outstanding contributions to the Numismatic Community.
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awrence “Larry” Goldberg, a professional numismatist, currently co-owns and operates Ira and Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles, Inc., located in Beverly Hills, California.
Larry Goldberg worked for over 45 years at Superior Stamp and Coin Co., Inc. and was an owner and officer for over 20 years. Larry and his partner Ira Goldberg created the subsidiary company, Superior Galleries, which became one of the largest numismatic and philatelic auction houses in the world. Since 1970, when Superior conducted its first public coin auction, Larry supervised every sale through May 1998. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, Superior’s auctions grossed more in prices realized than any other numismatic auction house in the world. Larry was a consultant for the Columbus-America Discovery Group, the treasure salvage operation that found the S.S. Central America, or “The Ship of Gold.” This ship was laden with the largest numismatic treasure ever recovered. In 1999, Ira and Larry Goldberg were part of a group that purchased the S.S. Central America treasure, valued at over $100 million. This is still the world record for a numismatic purchase. On May 28, 2009, Ira and Larry Goldberg auctioned The Millennia Collection, which realized over $24 million, the most a World Coin Auction has brought in a single day. On September 6, 2009, Ira and Larry Goldberg auctioned a 1795 Reeded Edge Cent for $1,265,000, the highest price ever paid at auction for a copper coin. Larry Goldberg is a widely-recognized expert on all phases of United States coinage. For several years he hosted a live television program, Money Talks. His other specialties include United States currency and World gold and silver coinage. He is a contributor to two of the most popular numismatic reference books in the industry, The Guide Book of United States Coins (“The Red Book”), and The Handbook of the United States Coins (“The Blue Book”). He is also a contributor to many of the Krause numismatic publications. Most recently he, along with Ira Goldberg, co-edited the book Money of the World - Coins that Made History (Whitman). Over the years, Larry has helped to assemble and auction some of the most important collections ever sold. In November of 2005, the Goldbergs privately sold the world-renowned King of Siam Set for a record-breaking $8.5 million. This was the third time the Goldbergs have sold the set, also a record. Larry Goldberg has been a member of the Professional Numismatic Guild (PNG #154) since 1969, and is a lifetime member of the American Numismatic Association (LM#845). He has been a member of the American Numismatic Society since 1969. He is also a licensed auctioneer in California. Larry Goldberg has appeared in depositions and court many times as an expert witness for the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service. He has also been an appraiser for many of the major banks and insurance companies in California. On Thursday, January 6th, 2011, Larry received a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Numismatic Society, for his outstanding contributions to the Numismatic Community.