1803 1C No Stems, BN MS(PCGS#921501)

August 2020 U.S. Coins Auction

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

1043

等级

AU55BN

价格

28,344

详细说明

Boldly Defined 1803 S-243 Cent Popular Stemless Wreath Variety 1803 Draped Bust Cent. S-243. Rarity-2. Stemless Wreath. AU-55 (PCGS). Type:Draped Bust. Design: Obv: A draped bust of Liberty faces right with the word LIBERTY above and the date 1803 below. Liberty's hair is tied with a ribbon, the ends of which are plainly evident at the back of the head. Rev: A wreath surrounds the denomination ONE CENT, the base of the wreath bound by a ribbon tied into a bow. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is around the border and another expression of the denomination 1/100 is below. Weight Standard: 10.89 grams. Diameter: 29 mm. Die Variety: Sheldon-243, Breen-1. Obv: Small, Close Date, the digit 1 is blunt and close to both the lowest curve of the hair and the curl, the upper right corner of the digit 3 nearly touches the drapery. Faint die scratches are evident around Liberty's eye and at the junction of the bust and drapery. S-243 represents the only use of this obverse die. Rev: The Stemless Wreath, diagnostic for this die when paired with an 1803-dated obverse. This reverse is also readily identifiable by wide repunching to the final letter S in STATES and a second fraction bar placed below the primary one, its left end touching the top of the digit 1 in the denominator. This reverse die also appears in the S-241 pairing of the 1802-dated issue. S-243 is the only die marriage that corresponds to the Stemless Wreath Guide Bookvariety of the 1803 Draped Bust cent. Die State: Noyes A/A, Breen I. Obv: Faint clash marks are evident at the letters TY in LIBERTY and below Liberty's chin. Only the tip of the crack from Liberty's curl across the neck shows, protruding in front of the throat, the remainder obscured due to a combination of die swell and light wear. Rev: Clash marks from denticles are discernible along the border outside the letters RICA in AMERICA and below the right ribbon end and the digits 00 in the denominator. Edge: Plain. Mintage: The mintage of 3,131,691 coins that the Guide Bookprovides for the 1803 Draped Bust cent corresponds to the Mint's deliveries for this denomination during calendar year 1803 -- 2,471,353 coins -- plus all but 96,500 of the 756,838 cents (660,338) delivered during calendar year 1804. While many 1803-dated cents were certainly struck during calendar year 1804 (and possibly as late as 1806), the mintage of this issue remains an estimate since we do not know exactly how many 1804-dated cents were struck, or even when all of those coins were produced (they may also have been delivered during calendar year 1805, possibly even 1806). Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety: Rarity-2: 751 to 1,000 coins in all grades. Strike: The impression is ideally centered on the obverse, the border fully and uniformly denticulated on that side. The reverse border is also fully denticulated, although the strike is drawn to 9 o'clock with the denticles markedly broader from 1 to 5 o'clock. Most of the leaves in the wreath are blunt, as is Liberty's lowest hair curl and the ribbon ends, but all other features are boldly to sharply defined. We note particularly crisp definition to most of Liberty's hair strands and the lines in the drapery. Surfaces: Satiny medium brown surfaces with appreciable gloss evident. There are few blemishes and most areas present as smooth to the unaided eye. A dull mark in the hair above Liberty's ear, another at the junction of the bust and throat, and tiny carbon spots at the digit 3 in the date and at the border below the end of the bust will serve as useful identifiers to track this coin in future market appearances. Commentary: Sheldon-243 is one of the most readily attributable and popular die pairings of the 1803-dated Draped Bust cent. The Stemless Wreath feature alone is sufficient to attribute this variety, as all others of this issue have both stems. As if the lack of stems was not enough, the reverse die of this variety has two other naked eye attributes: wide repunching to the final letter S in STATES and an extra fraction bar below the primary one. Breen lists this die marriage as the first produced for the 1803-dated Draped Bust cent, no doubt because it shares its reverse with the 1802 S-241 variety. Interestingly, the 1803 Sheldon-243 was struck before the 1802 S-241. In the S-243 pairing the reverse is always found perfect with none of the cracks and border breaks that develop in the S-241 marriage. The ESM specimen is not included in the Bland census for the S-243 dies published in 2000, which includes coins that range in EAC grade from MS-63 to EF-40. In the 2015 Noyes census this coin is tied for CC#15 with a grade of VF30(EF40) Average. It is an attractive example of a perennially popular Guide Bookvariety will be perfect for another specialized cabinet. Provenance: From the ESM Collection. Earlier ex McCawley-Grellman's sale of January 1993, lot 114; Chris Kromer; Superior's Pre-Long Beach Coin Sale of February 2001, lot 2265; Heritage's ANA National Money Show Signature Sale of March 2003, lot 5052. PCGS Population: 1; 6 finer in this category, two of which are Mint State (MS-65 BN finest). PCGS also reports three grading events in the RB category: MS-64 RB; MS-66 RB; MS-66 RB. PCGS# 921501. Click here for certification details from PCGS.