Q. David Bowers
Number of dies used: The number of dies employed to create 1795-dated dollars is as follows:
1795 Flowing Hair, obverses: 9
1795 Flowing Hair, reverses used with this obverse style: 10
1795 Draped Bust, obverses: 2
1795 Draped Bust, reverses used with this obverse style: 2 Total: 11 obverses and 12 reverses for dollars of this year.
Die use averages: By dividing the number of obverse dies and the number of reverse dies each with the mintage figure for the appropriate design, estimates of the average number of impressions per die can be obtained. In practice, some dies lasted a long time and others broke quickly; the figures here are averages, as noted.
9 Flowing Hair obverses divided into estimated Flowing Hair coinage of 277,980 = 30,887 coins per obverse die.
10 Flowing Hair reverses divided into estimated Flowing Hair coinage of 277,980 = 27,798 coins per reverse die.
2 Draped Bust obverses divided into estimated Draped Bust coinage of 113,541 = 56,770 coins per obverse die.
2 Draped Bust reverses divided into estimated Draped Bust coinage of 113,541 = 56,770 coins per reverse die (the inclusion of the long-lived 1795 BB-51 die, which was used later, distorts this figure).
Numismatic Information
Collecting possibilities: For the numismatist interested in die varieties, 1795 Flowing Hair dollars offer 17 possibilities (or 18, if Die State I and Die State III of 1795 BB-25 are collected separately). As most early dollars on the market are unattributed, there is always a chance of finding a rare variety for a "type" price. Even when varieties are attributed such as in sales held by the leading auction houses rare varieties often sell for only a little more than common ones. Extremely rare varieties are an exception, however. A variety of which fewer than a dozen are known will always command wide attention. Even so, current market prices are apt to be much less than one would pay for a large cent of the same era and of comparable rarity.
Of the 17 known varieties of Flowing Hair dollars, it should be possible to acquire about half of them within a year or so. The others will be located a few at a time. If the majority of the dealer community and the NGC and PCGS certification services begin attributing dollars by die varieties, they will be advertised widely and will be easier to find. Of course, this is a two-edged sword, for then the prices of scarce and rare varieties will probably be higher than it is now.
There are only two varieties of 1795 Draped Bust silver dollars, BB-51 and BB-52. Both are readily available, and you will have no difficulty in acquiring a specimen of one or both. The 1795 BB-51, employing as it does the off-center Draped Bust on the obverse and the curious and long-lived Small Letters die for the reverse, is certainly one of the most interesting varieties in the early dollar series.
Technical Information
(Flowing Hair and Draped Bust types)
General information: All 1795 dollars have 8 stars to the left and 7 to the right, as in 1794. This 15-star count was used on all Flowing Hair and Draped Bust dollars of 1795.
Making punches: Master dies, puncheons, Or hubs (they have been known under many names over the years) were created for certain elements in the design of the 1795 (and later) dollars. For dollars of the 1795-1803 period, these punches, as I shall call them here, consisted of major design elements. Punches for the head of Miss Liberty, eagle, and much of the wreath were probably made as follows using the wreath punch as an example:
1. The engraver prepared a smooth, polished die surface at the end of a steel shank. A light coating of wax was applied to the surface, and a sketch of a design was transferred by rubbing or burnishing into the wax. By use of engraving tools, the craftsman cut the features of the wreath, including the branch and some leaves-intaglio (incuse) into the die. From time to time, wax impressions would be made of the engraving as it progressed, to show in raised or relief features what the wreath would look like on a finished coin. Some of the leaves were put in with punches. Finally, all details were completed, and the punch was ready for further use.
2. The die was heated slowly, then quenched in water, to harden the steel. The surfaces of the die were cleaned, and another wax impression was taken of the wreath, to be sure it was what was wanted.
3. The hardened die was placed in a screw press that operated slowly (alternatively, with a series of quick, light blows), as to squeeze the image from the hardened die into the face of another die, the second die being of soft steel (not yet hardened). The second die had a slightly conical face, rather than a flat one, to facilitate metal movement into the recesses of the hardened die.