1828 Half Cent - Cohen 1 and 3, what's the difference?

StopMotion

Hey,
I was looking on coinfact and past threads and staring at the photos, but I still can't figure out how they differ?
Is there something that stands out?
Thanks a ton,
SM

BillJones

There are three varieties of 1828 half cents.

Cohen numbers 1 and 3 have the 13 star obverse. The way to tell them apart is to look at the last "S" in "STATES" on the reveres. If you draw an imaginary line from the top leaf in wreath on the reverse, it will hit the "S" on Cohen 1, but will miss it on Cohen 3. Since Cohen 1 is supposed to be the scarcer of the two varieites, I think of that hit on the "S" as like a dollar sigh.

Cohen 2 is the 12 star variety. It's a blundered die. The die cutter just didn't punch in enough stars.