1805 Draped Bust Half Cent. C-4. Rarity-2. Large 5, Stems to Wreath. AU-55 (PCGS). Type: Type IV: Draped Bust.Design: Obv: A draped bust of Liberty faces right, her hair tied with a ribbon. The word LIBERTY is above and the date 1805 is below. Rev: Design of 1802 to 1808. A wreath surrounds the denomination HALF CENT, the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the border and another expression of the denomination, 1/200, below. A ribbon knot with double bow binds the base of the wreath.Weight Standard: 84 grains (5.44 grams).Diameter: 23.5 mm.Die Variety: Cohen-4, Breen-4, Gilbert-2. Obv: Large 5 in the date, which is diagnostic for this variety. The top of the 5 touches the bottom of Libertys bust. There is an engravers scratch at the left base of the letter L in LIBERTY, tiny die rust lump between the letters IB in the same word, jagged crack slanting down to the right from the top of the digit 1 in the date that continues through Libertys lowest hair curls before ending in the field below the ribbon ends. A sharp die defect at Libertys chin is called a "diminutive goatee" by Gilbert, a "wart" by Breen. The only use of this obverse die. Rev: The uppermost leaf point in the cluster of three is under the right side of the letter O in OF, which is diagnostic for a Stems to Wreath reverse of the 1805-dated issue. This reverse die was also used earlier in the 1805 C-3 marriage.Cohen-4 is the only die marriage of the Large 5, Stems to Wreath <em>Guide Book</em> variety of the 1805 half cent.Die State: Manley 1.0, the usual state. Obv: The die is cracked through the base of the letters LIBERT in LIBERTY, the crack extending left from the base of the L and right through the letter Y to the border. A second crack is evident from the base of the digits 18 in the date extending left into the field near Libertys lowest hair curl, while a forked crack extends into the right field from the sharp defect at Libertys chin. Rev: Multiple clash marks are present within the wreath, most notably at the letters H in HALF and C in CENT. The letter O in OF is a bit softly struck.Edge: Plain.Mintage: Government records report a mintage of 814,464 half cents for calendar year 1805, achieved in four deliveries:-March 30: 439,000 coins-May 10: 113,000 coins-June 29: 142,464 coins-December 31: 120,000 coinsThe exact number of half cents struck from 1805-dated dies, however, is unknown. Some of the coins struck during calendar year 1805 were from 1804-dated dies, as well as the 1803 C-4 pairing, and coinage from 1805-dated dies (presumably the C-1 variety) may have continued into 1806.Estimated Surviving Population for the Issue: 1,250 to 4,250 or more coins in all grades.Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety: Rarity-2: 600 to 2,000 coins in all grades.Strike: This is a crisply struck, fully defined example overall with particularly impressive detail to the strands of Libertys hair, the drapery lines and, on the reverse, the leaves in the wreath. The impression is well centered on both sides with essentially complete denticulation around the borders.Surfaces: Satiny surfaces reveal modest semi-reflectivity under a light. This is a hard and generally tight example, a few shallow planchet voids in the right obverse field are easily overlooked. A touch of glossiness to the texture and some extremely light hairlines are noted, but there are no sizable or otherwise singularly mentionable handling marks. There is even medium copper patina on the reverse, while the obverse exhibits slight mottling of golden and olive-brown.Commentary: As with so many die varieties in the early half cent series, the 1805 C-4 is available enough in lower grades, yet scarce to rare in grades above EF. The primary Missouri Cabinet specimen in PCGS MS-65+ RB is high in the Condition Census, and it is the only true Mint State in Breens census. A sharp AU such as this represents the finest realistically obtainable for most collectors. The sole use of the 1805 Large 5 obverse die in this pairing further confirms the significance of this offering. From the ESM Collection.
