1809 1C, BN MS(PCGS#1546)

August 2020 U.S. Coins Auction

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

1058

等级

MS64BN

价格

300,112

详细说明

Exceptional 1809 Classic Head Cent Noyes Tied for CC#1; Bland Tied for CC#2 1809 Classic Head Cent. S-280, the only known dies. Rarity-2. MS-64 BN (PCGS). CAC. Type: Classic Head. Design: Obv: A head of Liberty faces left with 13 stars around the border arranged seven left, six right. The date 1809 is below. Liberty is wearing a fillet inscribed LIBERTY. Rev: A circular wreath encloses the denomination ONE CENT with the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the border. Weight Standard: 10.89 grams. Diameter: 29 mm. Die Variety: Sheldon-280, Breen-1. Obv: The only 1809-dated die in the United States Mint's cent series, here in its only pairing. The digit 9 in the date is punched over a smaller 9 (Large/Small 9), and there is a tiny die defect in the field above Liberty's head at approximately 1 o'clock. Rev: The point of the highest leaf in the wreath is under the center of the final letter S in STATES. S-280 also represents the only use of this reverse die. S-280 is the only die marriage known for the 1809 Classic Head cent, and therefore the issue has only a single listing in the Guide Book. Die State: Noyes C/D, Breen VIII. Obv: A raised die defect bisects star 11 and extends nearly to the upper ribbon end, and there are clash marks along the back of Liberty's head. The die is worn with the base of the date distorted, the 9 underdigit blurry, a raised ridge along the border inside the denticles, and the periphery softly defined and flowlined. Rev: Clashed within the wreath both before and after the denomination ONE CENT with a tiny incuse die defect above the left upright of the letter M in AMERICA. An internal cud has formed between the two cracks within the leaves below the letters ES in STATES, one of the cracks extends back through the upright of the E to the border above the adjacent T. Another crack extends faintly from the cud to the upper left corner of the letter E in ONE, and yet another crack is evident in the field above the letter T in CENT. The reverse die is also worn with a raised ridge along the inside of the denticles and flowlines around the periphery. Edge: Plain. Mintage for the Issue: The Guide Bookgives a mintage of 222,867 coins for the 1809-dated cent issue, achieved in two deliveries during that calendar year: -June 3 = 47,367 coins -December 31 = 175,500 coins Breen disagrees with this total and believes that only the December 31 delivery was from the 1809-dated die pairing, while the 47,367 coins delivered on June 3 were from 1808-dated dies. Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety: Rarity-2: 751 to 1,000 coins in all grades. Strike: Softness around the peripheries on both sides is commensurate with the advanced die state, the obverse also trivially off center to 5 o'clock with scant denticulation along the lower right border. Other areas on the obverse retain at least some of the denticulation, however, and the reverse border is near-fully denticulated. The central design elements on both sides are boldly to sharply defined. Surfaces: An exceptionally well preserved survivor from this underrated issue, both sides are smooth with a delightful frosty texture. The obverse is predominantly steel-brown, although blushes of original pinkish-rose color persist around stars 8 and 9, the digits in the date, and even in the left field before Liberty's nose. The reverse exhibits powder blue highlights with much faded golden-brown and faint traces of original pale pink discernible with the aid of a strong light. Provenance markers are few, only a few swirls of lighter sandy-brown patina in the reverse field around the letter E in ONE and a couple of trivial marks on Liberty's cheek before the central hair curl behind the eye that is only discernible under magnification. Commentary: All 1809 cents were struck from a single pair of dies, a combination that saw extensive use and fatigue over the course of its life. The ESM specimen offered here represents the latest known die state which, according to Breen, was discovered by Tom Reynolds. The author describes this die state as "Extremely Rare." Because of this issue's relative scarcity, particularly in the finer circulated and all Mint States grades, it has long been considered a semi-key date, trailing rarities like the cents of 1799, 1804, and 1793, but more difficult to find than most others. Gems are unknown. PCGS has never graded even a single specimen of this date finer than MS-64 BN, nor has the RB or RD color designation ever been offered. The present example is among the finest known, tied for CC#1 in the 2015 Noyes census with the Ford-Hanson-Naftzger-Noyes-Reynolds specimen that turned up in England in 1973. That coin realized $129,250 in Ira & Larry Goldberg's January 2016 sale of the Tom Reynolds Collection, Part I. Noyes assigns an EAC grade of MS63(MS60) Choice to both specimens. Bland grades the ESM specimen MS-61 and says tied for CC#2 behind the Ford-Reynolds coin, which he grades MS-63. A truly remarkable example of this challenging issue, this coin is a standout highlight of the Classic Head cents in the ESM cabinet and is sure to sell for a strong premium. Provenance: From the ESM Collection. Earlier ex C.T. Whitman; S.H. & H. Chapman's sale of the C.T. Whitman Collection, August 1893, lot 863; M.A. Brown; S.H. & H. Chapman's sale of the M.A. Brown Collection, April 1897, lot 814; John G. Mills; S.H. & H. Chapman's sale of the John G. Mills Collection, April 1904, lot 1274; George H. Earle, Jr.; Henry Chapman's sale of the George H. Earle, Jr. Collection, June 1912; S.H. Chapman; S.H. Chapman's Arthur Sargent Collection sale, June 1913, lot 524; Carl Wurtzbach; Rodney T. Grove; Robert Nofal and Lewis Kling; Superior's session of Auction '81, July 1981, lot 527; Superior, privately; R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr., February 23, 1992; Eric Streiner; Jay Parrino, April 16, 1996; W.M. "Jack" Wadlington. Illustrated in the 1914 ANS Exhibition Catalogue. PCGS Population: 4; 0 finer in this category. There are no RB or RD examples of this issue known to PCGS. PCGS# 1546. Click here for certification details from PCGS.