1796 Draped Bust Cent. S-93. Rarity-3. Reverse of 1795. MS-63+ BN (PCGS).<strong>Type:</strong> Draped Bust.<p><strong>Design:</strong> Obv: A draped bust of Liberty faces right with the word LIBERTY above and the date 1796 below. Libertys hair is tied with a ribbon, the ends of which are plainly evident at the back of the head. Rev: A wreath surrounds the denomination ONE CENT, the base of the wreath bound by a ribbon tied into a bow. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is around the border and another expression of the denomination 1/100 is below.<p><strong>Weight Standard:</strong> 10.89 grams.<p><strong>Diameter:</strong> 29 mm.<p><strong>Die Variety:</strong> Sheldon-93, Breen-34. Obv: Hyphenated Date variety with a die break between the digits 79 in the date. There is also an area of roughness, probably from die rust, in the left field below the ribbon ends. Closer inspection reveals a small die chip at the back of Libertys head below the letters LI in LIBERTY. A workhorse die, this obverse also appears in the S-94, S-95, S-96, NC-2 and NC-3 pairings. Rev: Reverse of 1795 with a single leaf at the top of each branch, the leaves close together and appearing to form a complete circle for the wreath. The leaves are arranged 20 left, 18 right, berries five left and four right. The letters AM in AMERICA joined at the base, the left branch stem nearly touches the base of the letter U in UNITED, right branch stem close to the right foot of the final letter A in AMERICA. S-93 represents the only use of this reverse die.<p>Sheldon-93 is one of several die marriages associated with the Reverse of 1795 <em>Guide Book</em> variety of the 1796 Draped Bust cent. The others are S-92, S-95, S-96, S-97, S-98, S-99, S-116, NC-2 and NC-4.<p><strong>Die State:</strong> Noyes C/C, Breen V. Obv: Prominent clash marks are evident within the letters ERTY in LIBERTY, behind Libertys head below the ribbon ends, and in front of Libertys portrait before the nose, mouth, chin and neck to the top of the bust. Lightly cracked from the lowest hair curl through the digits 17 in the date. Rev: Bold crack through the top of the letters RICA in AMERICA, curving to the border above the R, prominent piece out of die between IC. Clash marks from the obverse denticles are evident along the lower border, clash marks from the letters BER in LIBERTY also discernible through the fraction and right ribbon with the aid of a loupe. A lighter crack originates from the upper right corner of the letter M in AMERICA and continues through the E, left foot of R, leaf below C, right stem end, right ribbon and numerator 1 before terminating at the left ribbon. The die is failing at the letters ICA in AMERICA and the fraction 1/100 with numerous other breaks in those areas.<p><strong>Edge:</strong> Plain.<p><strong>Mintage:</strong> The mintage of 363,375 coins for the 1796 Draped Bust cent provided in most numismatic references corresponds to the Mints deliveries for this denomination from October 13 through the end of calendar year 1796. With additional examples produced during calendar year 1797, and possibly also 1798, the exact mintage from 1796-dated dies is unknown.<p><strong>Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety:</strong> Rarity-3: 301 to 400 coins in all grades.<p><strong>Strike:</strong> All major design elements on both sides are sharply struck with crisp delineation between the individual strands of Libertys hair, the folds of drapery at Libertys bust and throughout the wreath on the reverse. Well centered on the planchet, yet with the denticulation light to absent along the left obverse border and in most areas around the reverse.<p><strong>Surfaces:</strong> Light marbling of olive-copper enlivens a base of golden-brown patina on both sides of this richly original example. Wisps of pale iridescent silver are also evident as are blushes of crimson-red in the obverse field behind the ribbon ends and at the lower left corner of the letter L in LIBERTY, light spot below the base of the Y. The texture is frosty with good gloss, and there are faint remnants of original pinkish-apricot color in the fields as well as the protected areas around and among many of the devices. There are no marks of note, the most useful provenance markers three tiny planchet flaws behind Libertys jaw at the junction with the neck, in the field between the digits 96 in the date, and in the reverse field after the letter T in CENT extending into the wreath.<p><strong>Commentary:</strong> In addition to placing gold coinage into circulation, Henry William DeSaussure, upon replacing David Rittenhouse as mint director in June 1795, stated as one his primary goals the improvement of all current designs on silver and copper coins. According to numismatic tradition, DeSaussure commissioned noted portrait artist Gilbert Stuart to prepare a likeness of Liberty after Mrs. William Bingham, nee Ann Willing. With silver coinage taking precedence regarding the new design, engraver Robert Scot did not prepare the first Draped Bust device punch for the cent until the spring or early summer of 1796. According to Breen, Adam Eckfeldt prepared the first dies for the new cent type using Scots device punch in July of that year.<p>In addition to its status as a first year issue, the 1796 Draped Bust cent is popular with collectors due to a multitude of <em>Guide Book</em> varieties, most of which are differentiated by the style of wreath on the reverse. The Reverse of 1795, represented here, is easily distinguished from the Reverse of 1794 and Reverse of 1797 by having only one leaf at the top right. With several hundred examples known, including a few Mint State coins, Sheldon-93 is one of the more popular die marriages among collectors seeking an example of the Reverse of 1795. Of course, high grade survivors from these dies always represent an important bidding opportunity when they appear at auction. The ESM specimen is tied for CC#3 in the Bland census with an EAC grade of MS-60, CC#5 with a grade of MS60(MS60) Average in the 2007 Noyes census.PCGS# 35816.PCGS Population (all die marriages of the Reverse of 1795 variety): 2; 6 finer in this category (MS-66 BN finest).From the ESM Collection. Earlier ex Dr. George P. French, March 21, 1929; B. Max Mehls Fixed Price List of 1929, lot 112; T. James Clarke, 1948; Dr. William H. Sheldon, April 19, 1972; R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr., New Netherlands Coin Co.s sale of November 1973, lot 413; R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr., February 15, 1975; Charles E. Harrison; Doug Bird, January 1996; Tom Reynolds; Ira & Larry Goldbergs sale of the Tom Reynolds Collection of Large Cents, Part I, January 2016, lot 71. Plated in the 1879 Edouard Frossard monograph, and also the plate coin for Die State C/C in the 2007 edition of the Noyes large cent reference.
