1788 Massachusetts Cent. Ryder 14-J, W-6395. Rarity-7-. Stout Indian. AU-58 (PCGS). The beautiful finest known example of this extremely rare contemporary counterfeit variety of Massachusetts cent attributed to Machins Mills. Just 11 examples of 1788 Ryder 14-J are known and the majority of those are well worn or suffer from condition or planchet issues. This incredible piece is head and shoulders above its peers and had the good fortune of not only surviving in high grade, but also having been struck on a relatively high quality planchet with hardly any of the planchet voids and striations that plague so many examples of the variety. Lovely light chocolate-brown in color with warm tan undertones. The surfaces sport a pleasing and natural gloss and other than a single planchet flaw at A in WEALTH, there are no significant marks or flaws. The strike is bold and well balanced throughout with only slight weakness at portions of the outermost peripheries affecting nothing but the tops of a few letters. There is wonderful detail to study on both sides that simply isnt present on any other examples of 14-J, or 1787 5-I which shares an obverse die.<p>This coin was graded MS-62 BN by NGC in its last auction appearance in the Partrick sale, and its easy to justify a Mint State grade given the lack of wear and amount of subtly reflective original mint surface remaining. There are even fine die finishing lines visible in the left obverse field. The Ford catalog, which offered a remarkable two examples of this variety, made reference to an example described as "Unc. ex Picker-Vlack, reported by Bill Anton." Such a coin has not been seen and it is most likely referring to the same piece offered here. Otherwise, there are no examples of the variety that rise above the level of Very Fine. The next best offered in recent decades was the higher grade of the two Ford coins called Choice Very Fine that realized $57,500 in 2004. The present coin realized $64,625 in the Partrick sale in 2015 and was acquired by Martin privately the following year. <p>Being that Ryder 14-J is the only 1788 dated coin of the four variety subset of Machins Mills issues, this coin represents not just the finest known of its die variety but the finest of an entire date within a distinct type of Massachusetts cent. Offering a wonderful combination of quality and rarity, the significance and singularity of this piece is hard to overstate within the context of the series. One of the standout stars of a collection replete with highlights and a coin that will no doubt move on to another world-class cabinet. PCGS# 691889. From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier from Heritages sale of the Donald G. Partrick Collection, January 2015, lot 5734.
