Mdwoods - here is the 1797 cent you wanted to see

BillJones

A few days ago I mentioned that I had a 1797 cent in my collection that has been officially listed as an AU-50 by Early American Copper collectors. Mwoods expressed some curiosity about the piece and asked for a photo. I am showing it here as an attachment. This is a Sheldon 139, Breen 21. Although it is most common 1797 cent variety, the condition census reaches down to a number of AU and EF coins.

This coin is traced from the Waldo Newcomer collection and has since been handled by B. Max Mehl, James Sloss, R.E. Naftzger, Abe Kosoff , Stacks, Dorothy Nelson, Stacks in their Feb. 1976 sale, dealer Jesse Iskowitz and then to me. It’s among the 10 finest known and is listed Breen’s large cent book. I have owned it since the spring of 1976.

Singapore

Very nice coin Bill.

I'm guessing PCGS would call that an MS64 or perhaps 65 - which is one of the reasons dealers lover to buy raw coins from EAC auctions or from Stack's and turn $3000 into $15,000 in 45 minutes.

Barry

Very pretty. I guess I'm not used to seeing such great detail on Large Cents, but the hair almost looks tooled (I'm not saying it is!)

BillJones

No, the coin has not been tooled.

I bought it because of the tremendous detail. High grade 1797 cents generally have sharper detail than high grade 1802 or 1803 pieces which are the preferred coins for type collectors because of the lower cost.

mdwoods

One of the finest Drape Bust cents I have had the honor of seeing. Choice coin with choice color too. Thanks Bill. The obverse would make a very nice icon for you. mdwoods

tjkillian

Great coin. I love the color, planchet and the detail. Now that is a coin with a history. Show us more.

Tom

dorkkarl

billjones, a fantastic coin, well worthy of the au grade. congratulations!

K S

kieferscoins

Wow! Great coin. Thanks for sharing. Do you have photos of the early bust dime (I think it was AU) you just had slabbed?

Cameron Kiefer

FrattLaw

Thanks a great looking coin. I'm starting to get into these as I am now buying them for a Dansco Type Set.

I'm not trying to hijack this thread, but since it's about Draped Bust copper, I was wondering if some of you earlier copper experts may have an opinion as to this 1804 1/2 Cent (cl 4, stemless) I recently picked up, sorry about the pics, they're a little blurry, my camera isn't that great.

Any ideas of grade? Value?

Thanks again,
Michael

Obverse Pics

Reverse Pics

BillJones

Your half cent is an 1804, Plain 4, stemless, which is known to half cent collectors as C-13. It is the most common Draped Bust half cent, and I my view the common of all half cent varieties. Still it’s a nice type coins.

It appears to have choice VF sharpness (VF-30), but the final grade depends upon what the black stuff is in the photo. If it's dirt or verdigris that can be moved the coin would still be VF and have a value in the are of $125.00 to $150 (around $100 to $110 wholesale). If it's corrosion, you looking at $50 to $60 or so.

FrattLaw

Thanks for the info, how can I tell if it's corrosion or verdigris? It's black and seems to be apart of the coin itself. When I turn the coin, the spots seem to disappear into the surface as though the coin itself is discolored. But when I look at the coin straight on, it appears to be black dots on the surface.

If it's corrosion, is there anything that can be done to remove it/treat it? Will it grow/spread on this coin and to others in the same album?

Thanks
Michael

BillJones

If the black spots are flat an into the copper, they are part of the coin. You really can't remove them without damaging the piece. It's the kind of thing that makes to coin less desirable and takes the price down a bit, although on a VF it's not that big of a deal.

If the spots are raised and hard, and you can't move them with something soft like a toothpick, they are probably corrosion, and that does cause a significant reduction in value.

mdwoods

Here's another nice Large cent while we are at it.