Walter Breen's Encyclopedia of Early United States Cents

Obverse 18. Hair in five markedly separated locks with long thin horizontal ends, three of them forming a vertical line. A pronounced gap occurs between the third and fourth locks for much of their length. Narrow solid shoulder loop. Date is fairly wide with the 1 and 4 almost touching hair and bust.

Reverse V. The slivers out of the die from TA down to the lower rim are constant.
Die states: 1. No breaks.

II. Cracked from the rim to right top of I, through the back of (A)c, later through the lower right leaf, stem, right ribbon, and numerator, to the left ribbon end.

Equivalents: Maris 34, "Plicae." Frossard 20b. Doughty 54. Hays 47. McGirk 5D. Ross 29-GG. Chapman 33. Sheldon 45. EAC 33.

Encyclopedia 1668.

High Rarity 5.

Remarks: Sheldon called these distinctive locks ''braids,'' translating Dr. Maris's sobriquet for the variety. Maris had described it from a worn specimen, (illustrated at Adams: 40)
calling these locks "twisted together before terminating," an error he would surely have corrected had he seen a sharp enough specimen. Maris thought to derive a stylistic resemblance between this obverse and what we now call the Gardner heads (his "Roman Plicae" varieties, our numbers 62 and 63). Gardner probably did use a specimen from this obverse die as a prototype for his lower relief device punch. Scot copied the latter in turn for the 1796 Liberty Caps.

Probably formed a small minority of the June 10 delivery.

An example with the edge blundered ONE HUNDREDA DOLLAR was reported by Dan Trollan. (Penny-Wise, no. 184, 1/15/1998, p. 10.)

Condition Census:

MS-64 Major Sir Rowland Denys Guy Winn, M. C., 4th Baron St. Oswald • Christie, Manson & Woods, Ltd. (London) 10/1964: 147 $2,800 • H. Van Colle. Dorothy Paschal • Dr. William H. Sheldon, 4/19/1972 • R. E. Naftzger, Jr., 2/23/1992 • Eric Streiner, 4/4/1992 • Dr. Allen Bennett. Obverse and reverse illustrated in Noyes.

AU-50 Charles 1. Bushnell • Lorin G. Parmelee • S. H.& H. Chapman 6/1882: 2622 $20 • Lorin G. Parmelee • New York Coin & Stamp Co. 6/1890: 692 $24 • James B. Wilson • Thomas L. Elder #21, 10/1908: 991 $23 • E. Gilbert • Thomas L. Elder #44, 10/1910: 47 $72 • H. O. Granberg • William H. Woodin • The United States Coin Co. 5/1915: 133 $135 • Henry C. Hines • Dr. William H. Sheldon • Dorothy Paschal • John W. Adams • Bowers and Ruddy Galleries FPL, 1982: 39 $10,000 • Del Bland, 3/15/1985 • Bertram Cohen • George E. Ewing, Jr. State II. Obverse and reverse illustrated in Elder-Gilbert, in Chapman, in Early American Cents, and in Penny Whimsy. Obverse illustrated in Morley.

VF-35 Henry C. Miller • Thomas 1. Elder 4/1917: 697 $30 • Howard R. Newcomb • J. C. Morgenthau & Co. #458,2/1945: 62 $65. George H. Clapp • ANS. State II.

VF-25 Thomas 1. Elder #87, 12/1913: 655 $35.50 • Dr. George P. French, 3/21/1929 • B. Max Mehl FPL, 1929: 74 $125. T. James Clarke, 1944 • B. Max Mehl • B. Max Mehl #112, 4/1949: 2315 $43 • Willard C. Blaisdell, 2/ 17/1975. Del Bland, 3/5/1977 • Denis W. Loring, 5/7 / 1983 • Jack H. Robinson • Superior Galleries 1/1989: 77 $7,425. State II.

VF-25 Sharpness of AU-50 but porous and black. Charles E.Clapp, Sr., 12/1924 • George H. Clapp, 3/31/1949 • Carnegie Institute.

VF-25 Sharpness of AU-50 but nicks, dents, and obverse burnished. Michael R. Kirzner, 2/1971 • Denis W. Loring, 2/1971 • John W. Adams • Dorothy Paschal, 5/1977 • Denis W. Loring, 12/1977 • Robinson S. Brown, Jr. • Superior Galleries 9/1986: 60 $4,180 • Robinson S. Brown, Jr. • Superior Stamp & Coin Co. 1/1996: 64 $8,800 • Daniel W. Holmes, Jr. State II.

VF-20 Sharpness of VF-35 but nicks and dents. Henry Chapman, 1/1921 • George H. Clapp • ANS.

VF-20 W. W. Hays, 1900 • Chas. Steigerwalt, 1906 • Charles G. Zug • Lyman H. Low 3/1907: 47 $3.50 • E. Gilbert. unknown • F. C. C. Boyd, 1957 • New Netherlands Coin Co. • New Netherlands Coin Co. #50, 12/1957: 943 $150 • Allen E. McDowell. Obverse and reverse illustrated in Frossard-Hays.

F-12 Sharpness of VF-25 but the reverse is pitted. Dr. Edward Maris • W. W. Hays, 1900 • Chas. Steigerwalt FPL, 1907 • J. P. Hale Jenkins • Henry Chapman 7/1922: 1548 $33 • S. H. Chapman • Y. P. Rosemont • Thomas L. Elder 5/1924: 1842 $41 • Henry Chapman • Henry C. Hines • Charles M. Williams • Numismatic Gallery #68, 11/1950: 49 $13.75 • Homer K. Downing • 1952 ANA (New Netherlands Coin Co. #38): 1690 $25 • Dr. William H. Sheldon • Dorothy Paschal • Dr. Nat D. Wilson • 1967 ANA (Para-mount International Coin Corp.): 155 $185 • Dr. Hiram T. Ward • John W. Adams • Bowers and Ruddy Galleries FPL, 1982: 40 $600 • Richard V. Punchard.

VG-10 Thos. P. Warfield • Associated Coin Auction Co. 10/1955: 171 $30 • Del Bland, 5/1957 • Wm. H. Smith (Eureka Coin Shop).

VG-10 Oscar J. Pearl • Numismatic Gallery FPL, 1944: 72 $30.

VG-10 John A. Schreuder, 4/1970 • Del Bland • Gene Henry.

VG-10 Homer K. Downing • Numismatic Gallery FPL, July-August 1951: 753 $30.

VG-10 Richard August.