1785 Connecticut Copper. Miller 6.2-F.1, W-2395. Rarity-3. Bust Right. AU-50 (PCGS). 126.4 grains. A remarkably attractive and high quality example of this variety with a fabulous pedigree. Smooth, hard surfaces are nicely glossy and totally problem-free. Predominantly deep coffee-brown in color with some lighter golden-olive toning in the fields, particularly on the reverse. Wonderfully free of planchet flaws and there are no distracting marks or roughness, only some minutely granular planchet texture can be found in a few places with a glass. Very well struck and nicely centered, the entirety of the design of both sides is boldly on the planchet despite the obverse being just barely misaligned towards 2 oclock. Desirable intermediate die state with the "goatee" die break present but the dies are still in good shape before the crumbling and weakness of the latest states.<p>The Condition Census candidates for this variety are a fairly crowded group of nice About Uncirculated coins including a few that could warrant low Mint State grades. Notable pieces include the Massachusetts Historical Society-SLT coin that was graded Uncirculated in our March 1973 MHS sale and AU-58 in SLT. That piece was quite sharp and had some luster, but had planchet flaws on the reverse. Lot 22 in New Netherlands 56th Sale, June 1962, also contained a sharp looking coin described as lustrous. This coin is right there in the mix with the next best specimens, and may even be preferable to the aforementioned coins if compared in hand to judge eye appeal. This is a great piece that offers superior quality and an exceptional provenance back to Henry Miller himself who plated this very coin in his 1920 reference on the series. PCGS# 685167. From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier from Thomas L. Elders sale of the Henry C. Miller Collection, May 1920, lot 1817; our (Bowers and Merenas) sale of the Frederick B. Taylor Collection, March 1987, lot 2321; Anthony Terranova Collection, January 2012. Plated in Henry C. Millers 1920 reference "The State Coinage of Connecticut" Plate I; also in Randy Clarks 2021 reference "The Identification and Classification of Connecticut Coppers 1785-1788," pp. 170 and 197.
