Walter Breen's Encyclopedia of Early United States Cents
Walter Breen
Obverse 30. Small bald spots in the hair above 1 and left of the lower round back curl. Unlike obverses 31 and 32, this has LIB about equidistant and in line, with B leaning a little right. Junction of the forelock and brow is below tip of the right foot of T.
Reverse GG. Type of 1797. Style I letters: straight tail to R. Plain die scratch from (c)A crosses the right ribbon. NI are high, TED are widely spaced, and (E)S is high. CENT is low and close to the ribbons, a leaf extends above and left of the tip of pendant of (N)T.
Edge: Plain edge (PE) and beaded edge (BE). Die states: I. Perfect dies.
II. Single obverse clash mark below the chin. III. Double clash marks on both sides.
Equivalents: Clapp 42. Sheldon 182. EAC 43. Encyclopedia 1729.
High Rarity 3.
Remarks: One of three very similar obverses with this reverse, nearly as hard to tell apart on worn examples as the obverses of numbers 28, 29, and 30. Comparison with photographs will usually suffice.
Clapp mentions one with a double profile.
Condition Census:
MS-60 Discovered in an old collection in 1954 by Thomas J. Wass III • C. Douglas Smith, 8/1958 • Dorothy Paschal • Dr. William H. Sheldon, 4/19/1972 • R. E. Naftzger, Jr., 2/23/1992 • Eric Streiner, 4/2/1992 • Thomas D. Reynolds. Obverse and reverse illustrated in Noyes.
Obverse 30. Small bald spots in the hair above 1 and left of the lower round back curl. Unlike obverses 31 and 32, this has LIB about equidistant and in line, with B leaning a little right. Junction of the forelock and brow is below tip of the right foot of T.
Reverse GG. Type of 1797. Style I letters: straight tail to R. Plain die scratch from (c)A crosses the right ribbon. NI are high, TED are widely spaced, and (E)S is high. CENT is low and close to the ribbons, a leaf extends above and left of the tip of pendant of (N)T.
Edge: Plain edge (PE) and beaded edge (BE). Die states: I. Perfect dies.
II. Single obverse clash mark below the chin. III. Double clash marks on both sides.
Equivalents: Clapp 42. Sheldon 182. EAC 43. Encyclopedia 1729.
High Rarity 3.
Remarks: One of three very similar obverses with this reverse, nearly as hard to tell apart on worn examples as the obverses of numbers 28, 29, and 30. Comparison with photographs will usually suffice.
Clapp mentions one with a double profile.
Condition Census:
MS-60 Discovered in an old collection in 1954 by Thomas J. Wass III • C. Douglas Smith, 8/1958 • Dorothy Paschal • Dr. William H. Sheldon, 4/19/1972 • R. E. Naftzger, Jr., 2/23/1992 • Eric Streiner, 4/2/1992 • Thomas D. Reynolds. Obverse and reverse illustrated in Noyes.
VF-30 George H. Clapp, 3/31/1949 • Carnegie. Institute.
VF-30 W. E. Johnson, 1/1971 • R. E. Naftzger, Jr., 1/ 1972 • Denis W. Loring, 5/1974 • Dr. Robert J. Shalowitz, 6/1974 • C. Douglas Smith, 12/1976 • Denis W. Loring, 2/1978 • Myles Z. Gerson • Denis W. Loring, 10/1980 • Thomas D. Reynolds.
VF-30 Robert J. Kissner • Stack's 6/1975: 319 $85.
VF-30 Homer K. Downing, 3/1/1950 • C. Douglas Smith.
VF-30 New Netherlands Coin Co., privately 11/13/ 1952 • C. Douglas Smith.