1793 1/2 C C-3, B-3, R.3 MS63 Brown PCGS. Our EAC Grade AU58....

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1793 C-3, B-3 Half Cent, MS63 Brown
Late Die State, Reverse Die Rust

1793 1/2 C C-3, B-3, R.3 MS63 Brown PCGS. Our EAC Grade AU58. This lovely medium brown half cent exhibits a bold strike on satiny, semireflective copper surfaces. A few scattered planchet marks and flakes remain in the right obverse field. The centering is exceptional, showing a full beaded border throughout both sides, with a plain border outside the beads around the entire coin. A minuscule obverse rim tick at 3 o'clock is covered by the plastic holder.

Variety: Cohen-3, Breen-3. The obverse appears on C-3 and C-4, while the reverse appears on C-2 and C-3. The obverse die is perfect, as always, while the reverse die shows the usual light die rust below TES and inside the wreath. This lovely half cent meets the criteria for Breen's Die State III.

Population Data (4/14): PCGS has certified 28 Mint State 1793 half cents of all four varieties, including this MS63 example, one of six at that grade level with 12 finer pieces. NGC adds an additional 14 certified Mint State pieces, including two graded MS63 and five finer. The total of 42 Mint State 1793 half cents undoubtedly includes several resubmissions, as the true Mint State population is likely in the vicinity of two dozen coins.

Heritage Commentary: Congress authorized the Philadelphia Mint in April 1792, and after land was acquired, a new structure was built to accommodate the officers and workmen who began copper coinage production in the first quarter of 1793. Following production of Chain and Wreath cents, the first half cents were minted that summer. Three deliveries of half cents, dated July 20, July 26, and September 18, totaled 35,334 coins. The middle delivery consisted of 24,934 coins, likely including every example of the Cohen-3 die pair. Auction records for this variety include an MS65 Brown PCGS example that realized $718,750 and an MS64+ Brown PCGS coin that brought $345,000, both in the sale of the Missouri Cabinet.

Provenance: The Americana Sale (Stack's, 1/2007), lot 5427. Stack's noted that this piece was "from an old-time holding."

Coin Index Numbers: (NGC ID# 2222, Variety PCGS# 35009, Base PCGS# 1000, Greysheet# 80837)

Metal: 100% Copper
Weight: 6.74 grams
Weight: 0.24oz

View Certification Details from PCGS