“Yes, he amused us by putting a ten cent piece into one pocket, whilst he was taking an eagle from the other.” — Address to the Freemen of the Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests of Rhode Island, on Congressman Tristram Burges, 1829. Deep toning of navy blue and gold covers most of the lustrous and lightly reflective surfaces, contrasting with the brighter blue of the reverse periphery. This is a standout example of the type, with full detail visible on both sides, from the gently rounded hair curls and individually rendered feathers to the crisp high rims. Some very minor hairlines are found with scrutiny, along with a light vertical line in the field off Liberty’s nose, a short mark off the bust truncation, and a few even less noticeable marks elsewhere. The aesthetic appeal and sharpness are each superb, even within the context of the D. Brent Pogue Collection, perhaps the finest group of high grade dimes of this design type ever offered. The dies are crisp and fresh, with no breaks or other issues visible. Many high grade examples from these dies appear somewhat prooflike, rendering them particularly attractive as type coins. No true Proofs are known, however. The JR book indicates that one Proof was reported from these dies, but it was “not seen by authors.” Breen suggests two, the Landau coin in NN52 and wonders about the Winsor (1895) coin. Cleneay:1502 was also described as a Proof, but all of these pieces were likely similar to this coin, pleasantly reflective but not specially struck. With four different subdivisions at PCGS among 1829 dimes (broken down into the imprecise fast-food categories of Small 10c, Medium 10c, Large 10c, and Extra Large 10c), there has necessarily been some confusion of attribution that makes the populations reported somewhat clouded by doubt. The JR book defines the Small 10c type as “characterized by a small round zero which is shorter than the digit 1.” The JR-4 clearly meets this definition. Among all 1829 dimes, only five have been graded finer than this one. It is difficult to conceive how any could be more attractive. PCGS# 4511. NGC ID: 2378.
