(1879) J.W. Scott Confederate half dollar restrike die trial. Brass, 30.5 mm. Choice Mint State.，Struck on a thin but well made brass planchet using the Scott CSA die as the obverse and an 1861 half dollar as the reverse die, thus creating a concave brockage impression of the Liberty Seated design. Lustrous gold with olive, deep blue, and coppery highlights and some light toning striations. The fields are lightly reflective or prooflike, which, along with the notable raised die polish lines, suggest an early die state that precedes that of the better known Scott restrikes in tin. The die crack at the base of the Scott die appears to be in an earlier state than on the tin restrikes (and those over 1861 half dollars that followed), faintly visible atop GINALS, heavy at L DIE.SC, then trailing off at OTT and DER. A wire rim is seen around the Scott die side, most prominent from 10 oclock to 2 oclock.<p><br />New to numismatic scholarship and never before offered, these pieces appear to be trial strikes from Scotts purpose-made Confederate restrike die that were produced contemporaneously with the mulings of this die and the original die for the Confederate half dollar. They bare some similarity to the known uniface strikings on custom brass planchets produced from the Confederate die after its 1879 cancellation. Their purpose may have been twofold: to test the Scott die before putting it into production (without risking the Confederate die in the process) and testing an 1861 Liberty Seated half dollar as an obverse die. This experiment was apparently unsatisfactory, as the Confederate die was employed as an overstrike with 1861 half dollars rather than married to them. A fascinating new addition to the corpus of Confederate numismatic Americana and an exciting new discovery from the holdings of the Ford collection.<br />From the estate of F.C.C. Boyd, May 1954.
