162 / 280
160
Finest Known 1798 S-176
183
1798 S-175 R3 Style II Hair, Small 8. PCGS graded Fine-15.
Glossy medium steel and chocolate brown
with frosty lighter brown in protected areas on the reverse. No trace of corrosion or verdigris, but both
sides are covered with tiny nicks. None of the marks is significant but there are far too many for the
sharpness grade. Very rare E-MDS, Breen state II, with a cud break extending from under the 1 in the
denominator to over the left top of the N in UNITED, and this cud does not touch the U. The reverse is
covered with fresh nearly vertical die lapping lines. Breen says the die clashmarks on the obverse were
polished away in this die state, but there are clear ones around the curl under the hair ribbon. Noyes lists
two examples of this die state in his census with net grades of F15 and VG8, and he has not seen this
coin.
Our grade is VF20+ sharpness net F12
. The attribution and Reynolds provenance are noted on the
PCGS Secure label.
Pop 1; 4 finer at PCGS for the variety, 1 in VF30, 1 in EF45, 1 in MS62, and 1 in
MS63+
(PCGS # 36095)
Estimated Value ....................................................................................................................................$500-UP
Ex an unrecorded source at the 1994 ANA bourse.
184
1798 S-176 R4 Style II Hair, Small 8. PCGS graded AU-58+.
CAC AP-
PROVED
. Very attractive frosty light to medium brown and tan with darker
steel brown toning on the highpoints. Satiny mint luster covers the fields
and protected areas on both sides and this cent offers outstanding eye ap-
peal in spite of a touch of rub on the highest points of the devices. No spots
or stains, only a few minor contact marks. The notable marks are a small
pinprick under the eye and a few light nicks on the lower part of the neck. E-
MDS Breen state II, showing a faint trace of an incomplete vertical die crack
in the field over the bust tip. Numerous sharp vertical die preparation lines
show in the field at the throat. Struck slightly off center to K-6. This cent is
plated to illustrate the variety in
Early American Cents
,
Penny Whimsy
,
and
the 1991 Noyes reference. Graded AU50 and CC#1 by 20 points in the Noyes
census, his photo #20833. Bland says AU50 and CC#1.
Our grade is AU50+.
Comes with a great provenance that can be traced back more than a century.
The attribution and Naftzger-Reynolds provenance are noted on the PCGS
Secure label.
Pop 1; none finer at PCGS for the variety (PCGS # 36098)
Estimated Value ............................................................................. $15,000-UP
Ex Thomas Cleneay, S. H. & H. Chapman 12/1890:1814-Dr. Thomas Hall
9/7/1909-Virgil M. Brand-T. James Clarke (via John H. Payne, Clarke’s of-
fice manager) 9/1954-Dr. William H. Sheldon 4/19/1972-R. E. Naftzger, Jr.,
2/23/1992-Eric Streiner 4/2/1992 (includes the Naftzger collection envelope).