Grand Prize Winner of 2005 Heritage Survey Contest Announced!

Dallas, Texas: Heritage Numismatic Auctions, Inc. (HNAI) announced the winner of their 2005 Survey contest today. Dr. Kirk Mills, of West Bloomfield, MI, will receive a high-relief $20 Gold Piece. Additionally, there were five Second Prize winners, who may auction $100,000 worth of material with no Sellers Fee, and ten Third Prize winners, who may auction $50,000 worth of material with no Sellers Fee. Three Fourth Prize winners each won a Saint-Gaudens $20 gold coin.

Dr. Mills, who works as an emergency physician at a large urban hospital, collected coins as a boy, when his paper route gave him great access to change. He sold his collection in order to go to medical school, and had his interest in numismatics rekindled several years ago.

"I had reached a point in my life where I had a little disposable income, and collecting was now an option," Dr. Mills said. "As I looked around, there wasn't much going on in the art world, stocks weren't particularly exciting, and it was then that I rediscovered my interest in coins."

Dr. Mills' collection focuses on the $20 Type-3 Liberty Series. "I like these because they're large, gold coins with a great deal of historical significance," said Dr. Mills. "As post-Civil War, pre-Industrial era coins, they symbolize the Great West period. Originally, I became interested due to the purely practical considerations of collecting gold coins, but now I'm much more attracted to them on an aesthetic level."

"When Leo Frese called to tell me that I had won, I couldn't believe it," said Dr. Mills. "He offered me a choice between taking the high-relief or taking $10,000 in cash. Originally, I was going to take the cash, but, as I thought about it, I realized that the coin would be a life-long reminder of just how lucky I was, and that, over the years, it would mean much more to me than the money. I'm going to give the coin to my 9 year-old son, Wesley, for his birthday. Down the road, it can serve to either fund his college education or to further spur his interest in numismatics. Either way, he wins. By the way, Wesley is on track to become an excellent coin grader. He helps me grade my $20 Liberty's, so maybe someday he'll wind up working for Heritage!"

"Speaking of Heritage," Dr. Mills added, "I was told by several dealers early on in my collecting experience that Heritage was more expensive and hard to deal with. As time went by, though, and I found myself spending more and more time on Heritage's website, I realized that they were my coin dealer, and that I was getting better material from them, at better prices, than I could ever get anywhere else. About a year ago, they made me a Legacy customer, which even further raised my opinion of them. Of course, winning this contest sealed the deal, and now I'm a Heritage customer for life!"

Heritage Numismatic Auctions Inc. world headquarters are located at 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th Floor, Dallas, Texas, 75219. 800 (US COINS) 800 872 6467.