This gem 1839 Silly Head cent is highly lustrous with gently mottled deep tan and olive brown. A couple of tiny flecks of mint red remain in some of the tighter reverse recesses. Just a couple of trivial marks are only seen under magnification.The obverse exhibits attributes of Noyes Die States C and D, as well as the fine crack through the chin described in State F, though the state is actually earlier, with no rim cuds having formed and no metal out from the main crack on the neck or temple. Nicely struck with the dentils fairly well defined save for one area of softness on the reverse. The reverse is Noyes State-C.PCGS has graded nearly 200 examples of the 1839 Silly Head type, including both Newcomb-4 and Newcomb-9 varieties, and this one is within the top ten best examples of them all. A very respectable specimen of this desirable Guide Book type with both excellent technical and aesthetic quality.
