1787 Excelsior Copper. W-5780. Rarity-6+. Eagle on Globe Right, Arrows at Right. VF-25 (PCGS).Highly appealing VF quality for this rare and enigmatic early Federal era type. Deep copper brown fields support lighter reddish-copper devices. The strike is well centered, if a bit tight to a few of the peripheral devices, although we stress that all design elements are clear even if portions of the obverse eagle and the word EXCELSIOR are faint. Microporous and rough overall, yet free of significant marks. A slightly larger planchet pit at the upper right obverse border and a light carbon spot on the reverse border outside the letter P in PLURIBUS are the most useful identifying features. For the type, both the level of preservation and eye appeal are noteworthy, and strong bids are certainly anticipated from advanced collectors of colonial and related coinage.<p>There are several varieties of the Excelsior coppers, although in general the type shows an exact copy of the New York State arms on the obverse with the state motto EXCELSIOR below and a heraldic eagle with the Latin motto E PLURIBUS UNUM on the reverse. Two obverse varieties are known, one with the eagle atop the globe facing right, as here, and the other with the eagle facing left. The Eagle on Globe Right obverse is paired with two reverse dies, one with a small eagle and the arrows at right, as here, and the other with a large eagle and arrows left. The Eagle on Globe Left obverse is known only with the small eagle reverse. All three varieties are elusive, the Eagle on Globe Right, Arrows at Left the rarest with only six examples known. The next rarest is the Eagle on Globe Right, Arrows at Right, offered here, with the Eagle on Globe Left the most frequently encountered in numismatic circles.<p>The origin and intent of the Excelsior coppers is unknown, although modern numismatic scholarship attributes them to a joint minting operation of John Bailey and Ephraim Brasher in or near New York City, i.e. the same outfit that is believed to have produced the more plentiful Nova Eborac coppers of 1787. The Excelsior coppers may have been intended as patterns to convince the New York legislature to issue Brasher and Bailey a contract to produce copper coinage for the state. When the hoped-for contract failed to materialize, and given the worn state of most survivors, the coins appear to have been released into circulation, probably alongside Bailey and Brashers later Nova Eborac pieces. While the detailed history of these coppers remains shrouded in mystery, the design clearly points to a New York connection. With few examples known, irrespective of variety, the opportunity to acquire a coin with the quality and eye appeal offered here should not be overlooked.Ex Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society; Heritages sale of the Eric P. Newman Collection, Part IV, May 2014, lot 30378.
