1799 Draped Bust Cent. S-189. Rarity-2. VF Details--Environmental Damage (PCGS).With virtually all design elements boldly defined and relatively pleasing toning in blended crimson and copper brown, there is much to recommend this key date example to the large cent enthusiast. A few trivial handling marks are evident over Libertys portrait, and minor edge disturbances are noted for 2, 8 and 11 oclock on the obverse. The PCGS qualifier concerns an overall rough texture and light pitting to both sides, reddish-russet surface scale scattered about on the obverse. The rarest <em>date</em> in the entire large cent series of 1793 to 1857, the 1799 was produced in small, albeit unknown numbers. We can discount the Mints reported delivery of 904,585 cents for calendar year 1799 since most of those coins were struck from 1798-dated dies. A small percentage of that total is believed to represent the mintage for the S-188 and NC-1 overdate varieties; the S-189 perfect date coins are thought to have been struck in 1800 since most examples, as here, are on the same dark planchets as many of the 1800 varieties. These planchets are attributed to two shipments of copper that the Mint received from Boulton in England during July of 1799. Despite its imperfections, the present example retains far more detail than many 1799/8 and 1799 cents, and it is sure to find its way into an advanced early copper collection.From the E. Horatio Morgan Collection. Collector envelope with attribution notation included.
