1800 Draped Bust Cent. S-197. Rarity-1. AU-58 (PCGS). This example offers exceptional quality and eye appeal for an eagerly sought die pairing of the 1800-dated cent issue. Satiny surfaces are impressively smooth overall with plenty of good gloss. Predominantly toned in rich copper-brown, blushes of original reddish-rose mint color remain in the protected areas around some of the design elements, especially on the obverse along the back of Libertys head and around the ribbon ends. The strike is nicely centered, even though the border denticulation is not complete, and all design elements are boldly to sharply defined. A slanting mark on Libertys forehead behind the eye and another behind the chin are perhaps the most useful provenance markers for this impressive piece. Breen Die State IV.<p>Sheldon-197 is the popular and readily identifiable Q Variety of the 1800 Draped Bust cent (also known as "18Q0"), and it represents the only use of this obverse die. Prominent die breaks within and to the right of the first digit 0 in the date give this numeral the look of a letter Q. These breaks extend below the left base of the second digit 0, and other prominent die breaks are evident between the letters IB in LIBERTY and between the base of the letters BE and the top of Libertys head. The reverse die of S-197 was also used to strike the 1800 NC-2 variety, and it is easiest to attribute by looking for remnants of a previously punched letter S that appear as a hook at the lower right edge of the primary second S in the word STATES. The first S in this position was punched too low and then partially effaced. The present example is ranked CC#14 in the 2015 Noyes census with an EAC grade of EF40(EF45) AvePlus.<p> Ex Stu Levine; Heritages Long Beach Signature Sale of October 1995, lot 5670; DV; Haig A. Koshkarian Collection.
