1792 Washington President pattern. General Reverse. Baker-59, Breen-1234, Musante GW-35, W-16090. Plain edge. VF-35 (PCGS).179.3 grains. By Jacob Perkins. Glossy medium chocolate brown with smooth surfaces and superb visual appeal. A trivial amount of ancient dark encrustation adds contrast around the obverse devices and right legends, harming nothing. Both sides are choice and free of marks, a remarkable feat for a coin that saw some honest circulation. A shallow wipe left some lines in the left obverse field, more sitting atop the patina than interfering with it. Two infinitesimal rim nicks are noted atop the otherwise choice reverse. An area of softness at the central reverse shadows the highest relief of the obverse portrait, affecting 1775, SIGN of RESIGNED, and 1783. <p>Fuld’s estimate that there are "15 to 20 known, most well worn proving it circulated as a coin,” is now decades old but still seems accurate, as does his recognition that “none in uncirculated condition [have been] reported.” Breens note that this type is "usually in low grades" is borne out by the offerings of this variety over the years. Fords was a notable exception, graded Extremely Fine though showing "several areas of cuprous oxide accretions along with a few areas of active verdigris." It still managed to realize $25,300. Steinbergs (ex. Stacks June 1973, lot 877) was one of the better ones offered over the course of this generation, graded Extremely Fine in the October 1989 Stacks sale and showing equivalent detail to the Ford coin. It showed "traces of old smoothing in the left obverse field evidently to remove scratches," but still looked pleasing; it sold for $12,650. Ropers was holed, graded "Very Good, reverse weaker." Garretts was slightly sharper than this one but not as pleasing; it was described as "far, far above average" and sold for an impressive $15,500 in 1981! Crosbys was well worn — "obverse very good, reverse considerably rubbed" and sold for $9.50 in 1883. McCoys must have been beautiful to sell for $31 in 1864; Woodward noted that "so fine as [very fine] seldom if ever seen." Neither LaRiviere nor Collins had one, and Steinbergs may have been the last one to sell before the Ford sale of 2004. Since the sale of Norweb’s near-twin (Stack’s November 2006), which is tied with this piece as finest certified by PCGS, the only recorded sale we track was the nice EF in Newman’s holdings, sold by Heritage in November 2014 for $55,812.50. <p>The sale of Newman’s gold WASHINGTON PRESIDENT pattern has brought attention back to the importance of these patterns by Jacob Perkins, which were coined in Newburyport, Massachusetts in 1792. Perkins borrowed his designs — the design for the Washington Born Virginia coppers came straight from the 1790 Manly medal, and the design for his WASHINGTON PRESIDENT dies came from the 1791 Hancock Large and Small Eagle coppers. The ingenuity, die work, and production was all American, placing these alongside the Peter Getz patterns as not just circulating Washington types, but 1792 patterns that presaged the founding of the United States Mint and the passage of the Mint Act of April 1792.PCGS Population: 2, none finer.From the Archangel Collection. Earlier, from Stack’s, privately, June 1982.
