1787 Massachusetts Half Cent, Ryder 1-D, W-5900, Low R.5, MS65 Brown PCGS. CAC....

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1787 Massachusetts Half Cent, MS65 Brown
Possibly the Finest Known Ryder 1-D

1787 Massachusetts Half Cent, Ryder 1-D, W-5900, Low R.5, MS65 Brown PCGS. CAC. 75.9 grains. Equivalents. Crosby 1-D; Ryder 1-D; Whitman-5900. Crosby varieties are from Sylvester S. Crosby's self-published 1875 reference, The Early Coins of America, still an important work in the colonial coinage field. Ryder varieties are from Hillyer Ryder, State Coinages of New England that was published by the American Numismatic Society in 1920. The first edition of the Whitman Encyclopedia of Colonial and Early American Coins was published in 2009 with a second edition published in 2020.

Rarity. Jim McGuigan: Low R.5 (61-75 known). Mike Packard: Low R.4 (159-200 known). Michael Hodder (Ford): R.4 (119 to 160 known). Whitman: URS-9 (125-249 known). Unless an exact census of every existing specimen of a given variety is available, rarity ratings are estimates based on careful observation of the numismatic scene. Several observers whose experience varies, will arrive at different conclusions regarding rarity.

Auction Survey. An extensive survey of online archives and nearly 1,300 print catalogs dating back to 1960 located 790 appearances of 1787 Massachusetts half cents. Appearances that were neither plated nor attributed were not included, and coins in group lots were also not included. Just 71 of those lots are examples of Ryder 1-D, including 14 cataloged as MS60 or finer. The current price record for a Ryder 1-D is $15,600 realized in the October 2018 Stack's Bowers auction of the Archangel Collection.

Obverse 1. The arrow shaft is positioned below the left element of the W at the same angle as that element, and that is diagnostic for this obverse. A medium-size arrowhead is close to the Indian's tunic. The star is upright, its northeast ray pointing to the top of the Indian's head. The upper part of the bow is well separated from the N. The diagnostic wide M-punch has both feet distant from the center angle. The W is also wide when compared to the other 1787 obverse dies. And all other letters are shaped differently. There were three sets of letter punches used for the Massachusetts half cent obverse dies, two in 1787 and one in 1788. Obverse 1 is unique to this die marriage.

Reverse D. No arrows join the wing, diagnostic for this reverse. The letter and numeral punches are different than any other reverse die for the Massachusetts half cents. The date elements are especially delicate and well-spaced below a single exergue line that is slightly doubled at its left end. The arrow shafts form a distinctive V-shaped pattern. Small leaves are separated from the wing and the branch stem is well above the exergue line. The legend has MA close and all other letters widely spaced. Reverse D appears with obverse dies 1, 4, and 6.

Edge. Plain as always for the Massachusetts half cents.

Surfaces. It is our opinion that this elegant Gem deserves a Red and Brown designation while PCGS is more conservative with their Brown assignment. Stack's described this coin as "Choice Uncirculated, red and brown" in the Ford catalog. A highly lustrous Gem, this half cent has olive-brown and pale blue toning, retaining substantial reddish-orange mint color. A glass reveals a faint scratch from the left base of the A in WEALTH toward the arrow shaft. The Indian's waist lacks detail as usual for the variety, and the right leg (viewer's left) is disjointed. The shield over the eagle's breast lacks detail although HALF CENT is fully readable.

Die State. Minuscule die lumps and linear cracks appear in the right obverse field with additional reverse die lumps near the inner leaves of the branch.

Condition Census. This piece and two others are contenders for the finest known Ryder 1-D. The others are an MS64+ Red and Brown PCGS example that Stack's Bowers sold in October 2018, and the ANS example that also retains original red mint color. Perhaps 10 different Mint State examples exist, including the ANS coin.

Appearances. Illustrated at PCGS.com. Plated in the Miller and Ford catalogs.

PCGS Population (9/21). PCGS has certified six MS65 Brown 1787 Massachusetts half cents and six finer examples, including one MS65+ Brown and five that grade MS66 Brown. The population data includes all nine varieties.

Commentary. The Massachusetts General Court appointed a committee to study the matter of coinage, and concluded that operation of a state mint was the best option. Coppersmith Joshua Witherle was appointed mint master, and Witherle in turn hired Joseph Callender to make the dies. Current numismatic scholarship suggests that Callender engraved the 1787 half cent dies, and Jacob Perkins engraved the 1788 half cent dies. However, the letters and numerals of this variety are unlike any other Massachusetts half cent, suggesting a possible third engraver.

McGuigan Commentary. Superb lustrous light brown displays original mint red around the devices and lettering. Possibly the finest known example of this rare variety.

Mike Packard Commentary. Like his federal half cents, Jim's Massachusetts half cents are a truly remarkable set, lacking only the incredibly rare Ryder 4-D. Almost every coin is among the very finest of its variety, reflecting Jim's keen eye and high standards for the pieces he puts into his collections. It also reflects his inextinguishable focus on improving his collection no matter how outstanding it currently is. For Jim, "Good enough" was never good enough if there was an opportunity for improvement. He always pursued "better" whenever he could, and his collections reflect his high standards and intense passion. While I cannot say that any of these half cents are finest known for their variety, I can say that improving on any will involve a lot of good fortune and, most probably, years of diligent searching.

Provenance. Ex: Henry C. Miller (Thomas L. Elder, 5/1920), lot 1550; Hillyer Ryder; F.C.C. Boyd; John J. Ford, Jr. (Stack's, 10/2004), lot 61.

Personality. The author of "The State Coinage of Connecticut" that appeared in the American Journal of Numismatics in 1919, Henry Clay Miller was an educator, broker, and mining researcher. A native of Philadelphia, Miller was born on May 19, 1844, and died on February 6, 1920. Remaining single his entire life, Miller was in a position to pursue his passions. He graduated from Williams College, and spent much of the late 19th century in the field of education. An obituary in the May 1920 issue of The Numismatist relates: "The death of Henry C. Miller on February 5, 1920, recalls the intense personality of a man who, a number of years ago, exerted a marvelous influence on a growing generation in matters educational." Material from the Miller collection appeared in four auctions, including his cents and half cents that Thomas L. Elder sold in April 1917, and his Connecticut copper collection that Elder sold in May 1920.

A printer and newspaperman in New Jersey, Frederick Cogswell (F.C.C.) Boyd was born in New York City on April 10, 1886, and died at East Orange, New Jersey on September 7, 1958. His numismatic interests were varied, as were his numismatic activities. He held life member number 5 in the American Numismatic Association, and he was a life fellow of the American Numismatic Society. Boyd served as president of the New York Numismatic Club in 1916, 1917, and 1923, and as the organization's secretary-treasurer from 1919 to 1920 and from 1929 to 1946. He was the associate curator for modern coins at Yale University. Boyd also conducted coin auctions in the early 20th century, including the 1922 ANA sale. He was the owner of the "World's Greatest Collection" that Numismatic Gallery sold in a series of auctions in the mid-1940s.

A colorful individual who was unafraid of controversy, John J. Ford, Jr. was best known to earlier generations of the numismatic community as a collector and cataloger. Ford was born at Hollywood, California on March 5, 1924, and died at Phoenix, Arizona on July 7, 2005. A World War II veteran, Ford served in the Army Signal Corps during the war, and afterward in the Marine Corps Reserve, and with Army Counter-Intelligence. He was active in numismatics from age 11, and worked for Stack's as a teenager. His 20-year association with New Netherlands Coin Company from 1951 to 1971 allowed Ford the opportunity to acquire exceptional numismatic properties for his own collection. Stack's and Stack's Bowers handled the Ford Collection in a series of two dozen auctions over many years.
From The James R. McGuigan Half Cent Collection.

Coin Index Numbers: (Variety PCGS# 688339, Base PCGS# 296)

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