1806 Draped Bust Half Cent. C-4. Rarity-1. Large 6, Stems to Wreath. MS-64 RB (PCGS). CAC. 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 1806 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-3. Obv: Large 6 in the date, which is diagnostic for this variety. The 6 is repunched, and it touches the drapery. The upright of the letter R in LIBERTY is missing its right foot. A tiny spur slants down to the right from a denticle above the letter I in LIBERTY, and there is a faint "dash" at the top right of the adjacent letter L. This is the only use of this obverse die. Rev: Stems to Wreath, one of two reverse dies for the 1806-dated issue for which this is true. There are five berries on each branch in the wreath. A die scratch extends right from the fraction bar, and a lighter die scratch extends toward the letter R in AMERICA from the leaf tip below. There is a small lump protruding from the leaf above the letter T in CENT that Manley opines may be the remnant of an errant T. This reverse was later used in the 1807 C-1 pairing.Cohen-4 is the only die marriage of the Large 6, Stems to Wreath <em>Guide Book</em> variety of the 1806 half cent.Die State: Manley 1.0. Obv: Bold repunching is evident along the left edge and at the base of the digit 6 in the date. Rev: Perfect.Edge: Plain.Mintage: The reported half cent mintage for calendar year 1806 is 356,000 coins, achieved in two deliveries:-September 19: 179,000 coins-December 30: 177,000 coinsThe mintage from 1806-dated dies is unknown, however, as some of the coins delivered that year many have been from the 1805 C-1 die pairing, and many examples from 1806-dated dies were almost certainly struck during calendar year 1807.Estimated Surviving Population for the Issue: More than 4,000 coins in all grades.Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety: Rarity-1: More than 2,000 coins in all grades.Strike: Detail is sharp overall with softness confined to Libertys should, the end of the bust and the opposing areas within the wreath on the reverse. Denticulation is light to absent in a few isolated areas around the borders, to no great detriment to this well produced example.Surfaces: Vivid mint-orange color is very much in evidence on both sides of this beautiful near-Gem, light gray-brown patina also present. Frosty in texture with only a few extremely faint carbon flecks scattered about, a trivial scuff in the field before Libertys nose is a useful provenance marker.Commentary: Thanks to a hoard dispersed by S.H. and H. Chapman circa 1906, the 1806 C-4 is one of the more available Draped Bust half cent varieties in Mint State. The present offering will certainly appeal to both high grade type collectors and advanced early copper enthusiasts. From the ESM Collection.
