Auction Name: 2026 January 8 US Coins Signature Auction - FUN Special Sessions: Ellsworth & Jacobson

Lot Number: 2020

Shortcut to Lot: HA.com/1389*2020

1794 1C S-17a R5 Head of 1793, Edge of 1793, Straight Wide Date, Fine Details, Environmental Damage, PCGS. Slightly glossy chocolate brown and steel. The highpoints are smooth but very fine roughness covers the fields and protected areas. In addition there are numerous shallow but obvious pits on the obverse, mostly in the field before the portrait. A small, dull dent in the hair left of the temple, several ticks on the cheek and neck, and a small rim bruise over the E in LIBERTY are the notable signs of contact. The date is strong and the legends are complete. E-MDS, Breen state II, Heck state 2, with die clashmarks over the fraction and a slight bulge through the left side of the L in LIBERTY. Graded F12 net VG7 in the Bland census. This cataloger's EAC grade is F15 sharpness net VG8. Noyes photo #66913. Comes with a nice provenance that has been traced back more than a century. The attribution and COL Ellsworth Collection provenance are noted on the PCGS Gold Shield label (35504.97/44293927). The reverse of the holder is scuffed.
Ex Arthur Sargent, S. H. Chapman 6/20/1913:406 ($27)-J. P. Hale Jenkins, Henry Chapman 7/26/1922:1475 ($33)-S. H. Chapman (privately)-George H. Clapp-unknown-Harlan Berk-William R. T. Smith-Ray Chatham-Robinson S. "Robbie" Brown, Jr., Superior 1/27/1996:22 ($2090)-COL Steven K. Ellsworth.

The June 20, 1913 Chapman sale of the Arthur Sargent Collection brought to auction a broad and carefully built cabinet of United States gold, silver, and copper coins, with particular strength in early federal issues and large cents. The collection included notable gold rarities such as a 1795 eagle, early quarter eagles of 1807, 1830, and 1831, and the key 1877 three-dollar piece. Among the silver, Sargent presented a near-complete run of U.S. dollars lacking only the 1804, alongside an exceptional array of pattern dollars, including issues of 1836, 1838, 1839, and later designs by Longacre, Barber, and Morgan. The catalog was further distinguished by nine photographic plates, six of which were devoted to cents, reflecting both the collector's and Chapman's recognition of their importance.

The heart of the offering lay in the remarkable series of large cents, with extraordinary condition examples from 1794 through the early 19th century. Chapman noted new reverse dies and combinations unpublished in Hays, including unique discoveries, and highlighted uncirculated specimens of 1795, 1796, 1797, and 1798, as well as an excellent 1799. Later highlights included an 1800, 1802, 1803, an uncirculated 1821, and a perfect-date 1823 in mint condition-one of only two known in that preservation. These coins, many plated and meticulously cataloged, ensured the Sargent sale would become a lasting reference for early copper specialists. With its combination of great rarities, original discoveries, and plate illustrations, the Sargent auction remains a landmark in the study and collecting of U.S. large cents.

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