Coronet large cent

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Coronet large cent
United States
Value0.01 U.S. Dollar
Mass10.89 g
Diameter29 (1836–1839) or 27 (1839–1857 and 1868) mm
EdgePlain
Composition100% Cu
Years of minting1816–1857 and 1868
Mint marksNone; all large cents were minted at the Philadelphia Mint.
Obverse
1819 cent obv.jpg
Design Liberty
Designer Robert Scot
Design date1816
1837 cent obv.jpg
Design Liberty
Designer Robert Scot (original design), Christian Gobrecht (modified design)
Design date1836
1839 Braided Hair cent obverse.jpg
Design Liberty, Braided Hair, Petite Head
Designer Robert Scot (original design), Christian Gobrecht (modified design)
Design date1839
1855 cent obv.jpg
Design Liberty, Braided Hair, Mature Head
Designer Robert Scot (original design), Christian Gobrecht (modified design)
Design date1843
Reverse
1819 cent rev.jpg
DesignWreath
Designer Robert Scot
Design date1816
1855 cent rev.jpg
DesignWreath
Designer Robert Scot (original design), Christian Gobrecht (modified design)
Design date1839

The Coronet large cent was a type of large cent issued by the United States Mint at the Philadelphia Mint [1] from 1816 until 1857. [2]

Contents

There are two similar designs of the Coronet large cent, the Matron Head and the Braided Hair, the latter with a slightly altered profile. This was the last large cent produced by the mint, being replaced by the reduced diameter Flying Eagle cent in 1857.

History

During the War of 1812, a trade embargo was imposed between the United States and England, which had supplied the US Mint with copper planchets. [3] The mint's supply was exhausted in 1814, and no Classic Head cents were produced dated 1815. It has often been written that no cents at all were struck that year, but coinage did resume in December 1815 using an 1814 or 1816-dated die. [4]

Once the embargo was lifted and the mint received new planchets, large cent production resumed, this time with a new design of the goddess Liberty by Robert Scot. The design change was made because the Classic Head cents received much criticism.

In 1823, only proof cents were produced during the calendar year, all others were made in 1824 using back-dated dies. [5]

The new cents, known as Matron Head cents, were not much better, however, and numismatist Walter H. Breen called the design "a spectacularly ugly head of Ms. Liberty". [6] In 1836, Christian Gobrecht made several modifications to the design, giving the bust of Liberty a younger appearance.

Gobrecht made further changes in 1839, creating the "Petite Head" Braided Hair cent. In 1843, the bust was enlarged and tilted upward, this design is known as the "Mature Head".

Varieties

Matron Head varieties

Matron Head varieties (1816–1839)
YearVarietyMintageNotes
18162,820,982
181713 stars3,948,400
15 stars errorLikely to have been caused by Robert Scot's poor eyesight due to age
18183,167,000
1819Standard date2,671,000
9 over 8 error
1820Small date4,407,550
Large date
20 over 19 errorBoth small date and large date known [7]
1821389,000
18222,072,339
1823Standard date
3 over 2 error
RestrikeAn estimated 240 examples exist [8] Believed to have been created around the same time as the 1804 restrike large cent [9]
Silver restrike>2
1824Standard date1,262,000
4 over 2 error
18251,461,100
1826Standard date1,517,425
6 over 5 error
18272,357,732
1828Large date2,260,624
Small date
1829Large lettering1,414,500
Small lettering
1830Large lettering1,711,500
Small lettering
1831Large lettering3,359,260
Small lettering
1832Large lettering2,362,000
Small lettering
18332,739,000
1834Small 8, large stars1,855,100
Large 8, small stars
Large 8, large stars, small lettering
Large 8, large stars, large lettering
1835Small 8, small stars3,878,400
Large 8, large stars
Type of 1836
18362,111,000
1837Type of 1837, large lettering5,558,300
Type of 1837, small lettering
Type of 1838
18386,370,200
1839Head of 18383,128,661
Head of 1838, 9 over 6 error
"Silly Head"
"Booby Head"

Braided Hair varieties

Braided Hair varieties (1839–1857; 1868)
YearVarietyMintageNotes
18393,128,661
1840Small date2,462,700
Large date
Small over large date error
18411,597,367
1842Large date2,383,390
Small date
1843Small head, small lettering2,425,342
Small head, large lettering
Large head
1844Standard date2,398,752
44 over 81 errorIn reality, the date was punched into the die upside-down, but was corrected by punching the date correctly [10] [11]
18453,894,804
1846Small date4,120,800
Medium date
Tall date
1847Standard date6,183,669
Large over small 47
1848Standard date6,415,799
Small date (counterfeit)>10-12Although this coin is a counterfeit, many numismatists include this coin in coin catalogs
18494,178,500
18504,426,844
1851Standard date9,889,707
51 over 81This error is similar to the 44 over 81 error, and inverted date was corrected by punching the date correctly into the die [12]
18525,063,094
18536,641,131
18544,236,156
1855Upright 551,574,829
Slanted 55
Slanted 55, knob on earError caused by a die break
1856Upright 52,690,463
Slanted 5
1857Large date333,456
Small date
1868Nickel>7Pattern coins struck for collectors
Copper≈12

Replacement

An 1868 dime pattern struck with the Coronet large cent obverse. 1868 nickel dime pattern.jpg
An 1868 dime pattern struck with the Coronet large cent obverse.

The price of copper rose dramatically in the late-1840s, and the cost of producing large cents rose as a result. The US Mint started seeking an alternative that used less copper. The first attempt was to perforate the coin, resulting in the ring cents of 1850 and 1851. The standard composition of these coins was billon, an alloy of 90% copper and 10% silver. This coin was not placed into production as it was expensive to extract the silver from the alloy, and the coins were difficult to eject from the dies. Additionally, a drop in the price of copper temporarily eliminated the need to replace the large cent.

The price of copper rose again in the mid-1850s, and the mint again looked for an alternative cent. This time, the cent was reduced in size, only a little larger than a dime. Patterns for the Flying Eagle cent were struck in 1854, and proved to be a suitable replacement for the large cent. The small cent was approved for production in 1856, and several thousand 1856 Flying Eagle cents were sold to collectors. Full-scale production commenced in mid-1857, replacing the large cent last struck earlier that year. [13]

In 1868, eleven years after the last large cent was produced, a mint employee struck around a dozen and a half large cents dated 1868. These coins were struck in both copper and nickel planchets. [14] [15] Also produced that year were about 2 dozen dime patterns were minted in nickel with the obverse die of the 1868 large cent, plus an additional 2 dozen pieces struck in copper. [16]

See also

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References

  1. Garrett, Jeff; Bowers, Q. David; Bresset, Kenneth (2018). A Guide Book of United States Coins (72 ed.). R. S. Yeoman. p. 109.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. Garrett op cit p. 116.
  3. "Classic Head Large Cents (1808–1814)". Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  4. Julian, R.W. (May 3, 2022). "Matron Head Cents 1816-1835". Numismatic News. Vol. 71, no. 11. Active Interest Media.
  5. Julian, R.W. (May 24, 2022). "U.S. Mint Reports and Coinage". No. Numismatic News. Active Interest Media.
  6. "Coronet Head Large Cents (1816-1839)". Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  7. "1817 Coronet Head Large Cent, 15 Stars". June 21, 2012. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  8. "1823 1C Private Restrike, BN (Regular Strike) Coronet Head Cent - PCGS CoinFacts". PCGS. Archived from the original on December 27, 2019. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  9. "1823 Coronet Head Large Cent". June 21, 2012. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  10. "1844/81 1C, BN (Regular Strike) Braided Hair Cent - PCGS CoinFacts". PCGS. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  11. "1844/81 "Blundered Date" Braided Hair Large Cent". October 15, 2013. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  12. "1851/81 1C, BN (Regular Strike) Braided Hair Cent - PCGS CoinFacts". PCGS. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  13. "1857 Flying Eagle Cent". July 20, 2009. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  14. "J610/P675". uspatterns.com. Archived from the original on November 3, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  15. "J611/P676". uspatterns.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  16. "J647/P720". uspatterns.com. Archived from the original on May 10, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
Preceded by United States one-cent coin
(1816–1857)
Succeeded by