1793 1/2 C C-1, B-1, High R.3, AU55 PCGS. CAC....

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1793 C-1, B-1 Half Cent, AU55
The First of its Denomination

1793 1/2 C C-1, B-1, High R.3, AU55 PCGS. CAC. Manley Die State 1.0. Fuhrman Die State 1. There is no evidence of die roughness in front of Liberty's face, and HALF CENT is bold. The early die states of the variety are highly important as the "first of the first." Later die states are often described as "rusted" although mechanical "spalling" is a better description since delivery records suggest that every example from this die pair was struck on the same day.

In The Half Cent, 1793-1857, The Story of America's Greatest Little Coin, William Eckberg writes: "This variety was struck on July 19 and delivered the next day." Not only do we know how many of the variety were struck and when they were struck, we actually know who struck them. Chief Coiner Henry Voigt's ledger records Thomas Flude and Daniel Gerard as the individuals who were coining half cents on July 19. Flude began working for the Mint on September 27, 1792. An individual of that name arrived in America from Leicestershire, England in 1767. Gerard, whose name is sometimes spelled Girard, performed a variety of tasks related to the coinage of copper.

Eckberg's examination of original records, the primary source documents of Mint history, suggests that the long believed mintage of 35,334 half cents in 1793 is incorrect. The correct mintage, according to Eckberg, was 31,934 coins, all struck in July. He writes: "It is widely reported that an additional 3,400 were delivered with the Liberty Cap cents on September 18, but this is inconsistent with [Tristram] Dalton's records. Dalton's receipt for that day, shown here [in Eckberg's book], unambiguously specifies that all of the coins delivered were cents."

A nicely struck and well-centered example with full margins outside the beaded borders, this piece has a few scattered marks of no consequence. Both sides of this Choice AU half cent show intermingled tan, olive, chocolate, and steel-brown toning. Only a trace of high-point rub separates this example from a Mint State grade.

Bruce Gimelson's Garrison Collection has ranked number one on the PCGS Set Registry for the basic set of circulation strike half cents with CAC approval for more than two years.
Ex: William F. Dunham Collection (B. Max Mehl, 6/1941); Anthony J. Terranova; Bruce Gimelson.
From The Garrison Collection.

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 2222, Variety PCGS# 35003, Base PCGS# 1000, Greysheet# 80835)

Weight: 6.74 grams

Metal: 100% Copper

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