Walter Breen's Encyclopedia of United States and Colonial Proof Coins 1722-1989

For the restrike, with flat based 2 (rev. of 1819), see Restrikes and Fantasy Pieces, below.

Half Dollar. Flat based fancy 2. Ov. 107. LM 9/67:255.

- Unattributed, fancy 2, possibly same dies. (1) Newcomb 1:742. (2) Newcomb 11:847. (3) T. James Clarke: 1262, obv. proof, rev. unc. (4) Allenburger, McPherson:870, C.A. Cass, "Empire": 1523, W.L.Carson, possibly same as one of first two. (5) Mickley, Reichardt, Reakirt,Columbus MBS, Norweb, in set with the dime and quarter as mentioned above. One of the first four may have been ex Winsor:512 and/or McCoy: 448, Col. Cohen coils. Another, unverified, was the MacAllister, Lahrman:680 example.

From all this possibly confusing verbiage we can conclude that at least four different specimens exist, possibly as many as seven.

Quarter Eagle. Only one variety. So rare that its existence is controversial. I mentioned it as "rumored" in the original monograph; the piece alluded towas the Cleneay-Woodin (lot 943) coin, obv. proof, rev. unc., not seen in recent years.

Half Eagle. Only one variety. (1) Mint, SI. (2) H.P. Smith, John H. Clapp, Eliasberg. (3) Reported, untraced.

Proof sets may have been made; no occasion has been suggested

1828

Half Cent. Breen 69, Gilbert 1. High leaf ends beyond S; 13 stars. (1) Obv. proof, rev. Unc., ex Louis S. Werner in 1950's. Two others reported, untraced.

Cent. N-5. Large date, tops of 82 almost touch, high leaf nearer 0 than S, another leaf point midway F A; very faint crack, tops of TED. (1) Mint, SI, cleaned. (2) Cleneay: 1869, Beckwith: 74, W. F. Morgan: 330, Mehl, T. James Clarke: 223, Emanuel Taylor, Phila. Estate. First variety of the year, earliest in a muling group which included two 1827 reverses. True sequence: N-5, 2, 4, 3, 1, 12,7,6,8, 11, 9, 10.

- N-8. Divided large date 18 28, high leaf central under S; die scratches in field below ribbon and stem. Perfect die, or with extremely faint crack through tops of TED (coincidentally). Miller: 879, Mehll0/23, Clapp, ANS, whereabouts unknown. Note: Newcomb II: 599 to Phila. Estate, called "proof," has wear and handling, grades EF-AU and may never have begun as a proof.

A third variety (N-l, identified by dot within upper curl of 2, tops of ER even, die scratches between SO, the cracked Rev. G of 1827) is unverified; the piece responsible for the report appears to have been ex Ernest Henderson = "Sheraton," 1947 ANA: 1631, T. James Clarke: 222, Carabin: 703, 1958 ANA: 541, Dr. Sloss: 172, buffed. Rumors persist of the small date coin (N-I0) in proof; unverified.

Dime. Small date, as in 1829. Breen 2-B, Clapp 2. (1) Alan Weinberg, from England. Toned. (2) Phila. Estate, ex J. C. Morgenthau 1/43. (3) Newcomb at private sale, Boyd, WGC: 479; possibly ex Cleneay: 1501; exhibited at ANS: 1914. (4) LM 4/70:484, possibly same as last. (5) 1954 ANA: 519, doubted. Others exist with knife-rims and some proof surfaces, but lack proper striking quality.

Quarter. Browning 1. Punches as on small date cents. Rev. of 1827. First star much nearer drapery than border, light cracks through ED to scroll, and from top of scroll under 0 to AME. (1) Boyd, WGC: 94. (2) and (3) Shown me by David M. Bullowa, March 18, 1952, earlier unattributed. (4) Speir sale: 21. (5) James A. Stack estate: 31 (unverified), $3500. This or preceding may be same as (1).

- B-2. Obv. as last. Rev. of 1824. Small die chip up from top of scroll between s and final S; spine leftwards from lowest arrowhead barb. "Dupont": 1804.

- B-4. First star much nearer border than drapery; F below O. (1) Cleneay:1340, Allenburger, T. James Clarke, NN 47:1514, Eugene Gardner:1630. (2) Earle: 3065, Hillyer Ryder, Wayte Raymond, NN 49:1150, minute field nicks. (3) Boyd, WGC:97, nicked, possibly 1946 ANA:429, S.W. Freeman: 1555. (4) T. James Clarke, duplicate, privately sold. (5) Col. Green, Browning Plate coin. (6) LM 10 / 69: 85. (7) Dr. D. C. Montgomery:1271, possibly same as one of foregoing.

Several others are around for which attribution has not as yet been feasible. (a) Parmelee: 981, H. P. Smith. This may be (2) above, of B-4. (b) Newcomb I: 601, possibly same as one of above. (c) Woodin: 564. (d) W. L. Carson. They may not represent four different examples. When I called the B-4 "R-6" I was thinking of all these as B-4's.

Half Dollar. Large date, large curled curved-based 2 without knob. Overton 105, Beistle 3-D. Reported by Beistle as a proof, therefore evidently a Col. Green coin. Newcomb I: 743 may be this variety.

- Small 8's, flat based 2, large letters (the common type). Unattributed. (1) R. E. Cox: 1834. (2) Newcomb I: 848, obv. proof, rev. unc., possibly ex Woodin: 172. (3) and (4) Woodin: 165-166, two different varieties. Cf. McCoy: 449, Ten Eyck, "rev. tarnished.' ,
Others are reported but attributions are not available, except for Overton 118 = Beistle 9-M: last star almost touches curl, 5th - 6th and 10th - 11th stars too closely spaced, UNITEDST ATES as one word. Winner Delp: 72, $1050, unverified.

Half Eagle. 1828/27, B. I-A. Eliasberg, ex Clapp. - Normal date. B. 2-B. (1) SI ex Mint. (2) Mrs. Norweb. Compare also Bell II: 605, at a then (1963) high $4650.

Proof sets may have been made up earlier and later in the year. The earlier ones would have contained the B-1 or B-2 quarter and the large curled 2 half dollar; later ones the B-4 quarter and small 8's flat based 2 half dollar. Occasions for manufacture unknown, though the dime logically would have been sent out to exhibit the new coining technique (close collar) and new border treatment by Kneass (beads within a plain raised rim). However, no record of such presentation survives.