Question About Collis 1959 George Washington Steel Restrike Impression

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Rcoins55
Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
edited March 15, 2026 10:24AM in U.S. Coin Forum

Hi Everyone,

Has anyone seen anything like this before or know anything about this piece? This appears to possibly be related to the 1959 Colis restrikes of the Washington Born Virginia medal. It is a negative impression in a steel bar, and the image of Washington has a different texture and appears granular. The opposite side is blank. On the side of the steel bar there is an interesting mark which looks like a small bar code. Could this be a part of its production? Or could it be a later piece but is somehow connected to the 1959 restrike?

Let me know your thoughts.

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  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Interesting.

    Are you sure it is steel? Is it magnetic?

    Let me do a little research on the restrikes.

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    It is magnetic. My magnet stuck to the bar. Thank you!

  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited March 14, 2026 11:58AM
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    This thread says that copy dies were made and used for the restrikings.

    https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/972440/collis-restrike-whereabouts

    "Copy dies" implies that some sort of a hub was created for the transfer process.

    Your piece might be a test impression from such a hub, before it was impressed into the copy die. Or, it might have been made later from said hypothetical hub.

    More research is required.

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Here is another old thread.

    https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1066542/collis-restrikes

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    This article by Collis in the August , 1959 The Numismatist describes how the original die was copied in a steel-to-steel transfer process:

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    Thanks for your help! What do you think about the bar code on the side? Do you think it was a part of the process? It is possible this could be related to the original 1959 restrike but it could also be a later piece because of the texture on Washington's bust does not match the Colis piece.

    I thought that this could be a die break, but it could also be related to an original hub breaking. I noticed a crack that starts between “O” and “R” of the word “Born” through the hairline of Washington’s bust and through his shoulder and through the “B” in “Feb”. It is interesting.

  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    A letter to the editor from Collin in the November, 1959 Numismatist. Note that it gives the silver mintage as 27, not 22.

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    An ad from Collis in the December, 1961 Numismatist. Again it gives the silver mintage as 27.

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    This is interesting! Thank you!

  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    All of that said, the graininess of your piece puzzles me. It has been I while since I have handled the original die, but I do not recall it being grainy like this. Nor do any of the copper pieces I have owned or handled look grainy. Of course, it is quite possible that the field of the copy die was polished, removing any graininess there. I will have to look at one of the copper strikes to see if the lettering is grainy.

    I think we need to call John Kraljevich in on this.

    HEY @JohnKraljevich

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    @Pistareen

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • MWallace
    MWallace Posts: 4,682 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited March 14, 2026 5:59PM
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    Currently on eBay. May be related.
    LINK

  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    If you go back to the first post in this thread, hit the gear symbol, then edit, and change Colis to Collis to help people find the thread.

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    Thanks! I just made the edit.

  • fathom
    fathom Posts: 2,201 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    @CaptHenway said:
    All of that said, the graininess of your piece puzzles me. It has been I while since I have handled the original die, but I do not recall it being grainy like this. Nor do any of the copper pieces I have owned or handled look grainy. Of course, it is quite possible that the field of the copy die was polished, removing any graininess there. I will have to look at one of the copper strikes to see if the lettering is grainy.

    I think we need to call John Kraljevich in on this.

    HEY @JohnKraljevich

    Yeah. Grainy and weak.

  • CaptHenway
    CaptHenway Posts: 34,167 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Looking at the marks in the end of the bar, I wonder if that might simply be a mark from a set screw or some other vise-like mechanism used to hold the bar steady during the die or hub transfer process.

    Nothing on the other end?

    TD

    Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    There is nothing that I can see on the other end. Here is a picture of the back of the piece.

  • Rcoins55
    Rcoins55 Posts: 26 ✭
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    Here is a picture of the other end of the bar. There is nothing there.

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