1788 Vermont Copper. RR-29, Bressett 22-U, W-2220. Rarity-5. Bust Right. Fine-15 (PCGS).119.6 grains. An important late die state example, struck when these dies were remarried after Reverse U was combined with other obverses to coin Ryder-16, Ryder-21, Ryder-24, and Ryder-25. Rich dark chocolate brown with halos of olive around obverse legends. Finely granular but even, glossy, and very attractive. The planchet is unflawed, and we see no marks or scratches to note, just a little raised speck on E of ET on the reverse. The obverse is well centered, while the reverse is aligned to left, showing the die edge and a high upturned rim at right. INDE is off the planchet, but ET LIB and the date are nice and bold. The die rotation is identical to the late die state post-remarriage Ford duplicate, with the reverse rotated about 80 degrees counterclockwise from medal turn.<p>Mr. August, a studious connoisseur of this series and pretty much anything else he pursued, recognized the aspects that make this piece important and distinctive. As Tony Carlotto wrote in his book on the Vermonts, it seems as if all late strikings of Reverse U are on small planchets. This being the case, most examples struck from this post-remarriage late die state are on planchets that barely allow the legends to fit on the coin. This example shows an ideally centered obverse that displays absolutely complete legends, with none of VERMON AUCTORI touching the rim. The die crack from the rim left of L of LIB to central reverse is bold, and despite the advanced die state the centers are relatively sharp on both sides. The profile of the obverse portrait is still visible, and the eye appeal is excellent for the variety, let alone the die state. This piece is perhaps even a bit nicer than the Ryder-Boyd-Ford example of this die state. We dont recall or reference a finer example of this die state among those weve encountered.PCGS# 687739. BASE PCGS# 563. NGC ID: 2B5D.From the Richard August Collection.
