1797 Draped Bust Cent. S-120A. Rarity-3. Reverse of 1795, Plain Edge--Double Struck--EF-45 (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 1797 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-120A, Breen-2a. Obv: The digits 179 in the date are widely spaced, the 97 noticeably closer. The upper right corner of the 7 nearly touches the bust, and the letter T in LIBERTY is higher than the adjacent R and Y. This obverse also appears in the S-120B attribution, the same die pairing as S-120A, but with a different edge style. Rev: Reverse of 1795 with 18 leaves in the left branch of the wreath, 17 in the right, berries five left and three right. There is a single leaf at the end of each branch at the top of the wreath, with a double leaf cluster on the inside of the wreath at the T in CENT that touches that letter. This reverse also appears in the S-90, S-120B, S-121A, S-121B and 1797 NC-1 varieties.<p>Along with S-121A and NC-1, S-120A corresponds to the Reverse of 1795, Plain Edge <em>Guide Book</em> variety of the 1797 Draped Bust cent.<p><strong>Die State:</strong> Noyes D/A, Breen III. Obv: Die crumbling is evident below Libertys nose, mouth, jaw, and at the ribbon ends behind the head. Lightly cracked from the border to the letter T in LIBERTY, another crack through the letters LI is so faint as to be difficult to discern at most viewing angles. Rev: Faintly clashed within the wreath, most notably at the upper right, lower right and in the area of the fraction. A gentle bulge is starting to develop at the letters UNI in UNITED.<p><strong>Edge:</strong> Plain, per the listings in most numismatic references such as the <em>Guide Book</em>. In reality, however, the edge is partially beaded. Breen describes this edge as comprising, "Irregular pellets, some elongated, touching or almost touching."<p><strong>Mintage:</strong> The mintage of 897,510 coins for the 1797 Draped Bust cent provided in most numismatic references corresponds to the Mints deliveries for this denomination during calendar year 1797. Deliveries took place from February 6 through March 30, then from November 6 through December 13. No cents were delivered between the end of March and the beginning of November due to delays in copper shipments and the yearly yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia. The February 6 through March 30 deliveries include coins struck from 1796-dated dies, while coinage from 1797-dated dies continued into 1798. As such, the exact mintage of the 1797-dated Draped Bust cent issue cannot be determined.<p><strong>Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety:</strong> Rarity-3: 301 to 400 coins in all grades.<p><strong>Strike:</strong> Boldly double struck on both sides with particularly pronounced doubling noted for the digits in the date, the letters in the word LIBERTY, the ribbon ends and the denticles at the left and right on the obverse. On the reverse, doubling is plainest at the fraction, left ribbon end and the letters in UNITED. The primary strike is well centered and nicely executed, the major design elements ranging from boldly to fully defined.<p><strong>Surfaces:</strong> This is a hard, tight and satiny example with pleasingly smooth surfaces. A touch of glossiness and iridescent pale pink undertones point to an ancient cleaning, although both sides have retoned nicely in rich antique copper-brown. A few wispy pin scratches on Liberty cheek, another at the base of the neck into the hair, are the only marks worthy of mention, and they will serve nicely in tracking this coin through future market appearances.<p><strong>Commentary:</strong> The so-called "Beaded Edge" of this variety has not received much attention in numismatic literature and, as above, these are often listed as Plain Edge in leading market and hobby references. While its Gripped Edge counterpart is more familiar, the purpose of both edge styles is unknown. So, too, is the exact striking period and planchet stock for these coins. Breen suggests that the planchets may have come from a shipment of poor quality copper that the Mint received from William Coltmans firm Governor & Company on October 16, 1796. If so, the mintage for these "Beaded Edge" and Gripped Edge coins may be included in the Mints delivery of 411,510 cents from February 6 to March 30, 1797. The Coltman shipment was of such poor quality that the copper required scouring and remilling, at which time Mint employees may also have marked the edges, possibly as a way to distinguish these Coltman planchets. There is no proof to support these theories, and the curious edge types on the 1797 Reverse of 1795 cents remain a mystery.<p>With an impressive provenance to the Dan Holmes Collection, the ESM specimen of the S-120A attribution also offers very sharp detail for the EF-45 designation from PCGS. Evidence of light cleaning suggests that PCGS may have net graded a coin with About Uncirculated details to the Choice EF level. The eye appeal is strong due to smooth surfaces and attractive retoning, and the bold doubling adds further appeal. This coin is not included in the either the Bland or 2007 Noyes census listings. In his cataloging for the Dan Holmes Collection, Bob Grellman grades this coin VF-30 by EAC standards and places it at the lower end of Condition Census for the variety.PCGS# 35894.PCGS Population (all die marriages of the Reverse of 1795, Plain Edge variety): 3; 6 finer (MS-65 BN finest).From the ESM Collection. Earlier ex Catherine E. Bullowas sale of December 2005, lot 373; Dan Holmes; Ira & Larry Goldbergs sale of the Dan Holmes Collection, Part I, September 2009, lot 209.
