“1787” George Clinton Cent copy by J.A. Bolen. Copper. Musante JAB-37, Kenney-8, W-14390. MS-65RB (NGC). Another superb example from Bolens series of struck copies of colonial era coins, this a copy of a great rarity, indeed. The obverse is gently mottled light olive brown and faded red with a nuance of soft violet near the rim. The reverse is a bit more orange red, but still somewhat mellowed to olive in places. Sharp, lustrous and very attractive. One small planchet flaw is noted near 12:00 on the obverse. From the Eric P. Newman Collection, and noted by the Heritage cataloguer, "the present piece stands above any others known to us." We sold another of this grade in 2017, but this one might have just a bit more color. A small struck-in piece of metal is noted at the first G of GEORGE. The dies were executed by Bolen in 1869, and are reported to have been canceled and given to the Boston Numismatic Society. Bolens own example, now in the ANS collection, is marked on the edge "40 STRUCK," and the source for the believed mintage in this composition. The number in silver has variously been reported as two or three examples, with five more in brass. Though copper examples are the largest in number, they are also the most similar to the famous original George Clinton Copper which is both extremely rare and extremely expensive, thus these are highly desired. From the Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society, Heritage, November 2018, lot 15026.
