1793 S-5 Cent question?

Agflyer

I've recently given up my Ikes to begin my "box of 20". The first coin that I'm considering for my box is a 1793 wreath cent that is an S-5. My coin dealer, a guy that I've dealt with for at least 15 years has it in his case at the moment. This coin is in AG and to the naked eye doesn't seem to have any noticable porosity. It is not graded and it has very even wear with nothing distracting. I don't know much about these coins and I'm wondering if someone here could enlighten me. What exactly is an S-5? I know it's part of the Sheldon scale, but I don't know what constitutes it. What is a good price range for me to consider? Thanks in advance for your help.

mrdq

I'm wrong well, we're both right.
Acronyms

Agflyer

Yes, you caught me. I was just getting ready to edit that. I've read in coinfacts that S-5 is considered very scarce, but that's subjective. Thanks for the reply!

Agflyer

Just when I think I'm beginning to know it all. . . Actually, the more I learn, the more I realize I didn't know.

rhedden

S-5 is very scarce (R-4), but not rare. Has a large wide date on the obverse, small heavy bow on the reverse. It is not worth a premium over the commoner (S-6, S-8, S-9, S-11) wreath cents in AG-3. Your dealer should not charge you a penny extra for the variety. If he is asking extra for the variety, then pass. Also, you might want to have it attributed by ANACS before purchasing. Electrotype copies of 1793 cents are rampant and can be very deceiving.

Agflyer

Thanks Ron. What is a good price for a wreath cent in AG-3?

Barry

Hold out for better than AG-3. As time goes on, you're not going to be happy with it.

rhedden

I agree with Barry. Go for at least a VG-8. The asking price for AG-3 is difficult to establish because some dealers' idea of AG-3 is actually a fair-2 or fair-1, so the quality and eye appeal vary tremendously from coin to coin.

ctgreatone

you might be interested to know that one is for sell by Heritage in the "Wes Rasmussen collection" on the 13th of this month. The catalog shows a picture of one and a discription of all the Large cents for sell, and there is one for every S series. might be a good catalog to get I like it!