1788 Connecticut Copper. Miller 16.2-O, W-4605. Rarity-5. Draped Bust Left, INDL. AU-55 (PCGS).135.7 grains. Reddish-brown with a band of darker patina in left obverse field, this coin has surfaces that are uniformly microgranular with some minor planchet flaws through IN and Libertys head on reverse, wrapping around to the edge and rim at 6 oclock on the obverse. Very well struck and effectively unworn, with nearly all the fine details in the central designs clearly visible, including the grape vines on the shield. The centering is a bit off to the left, cutting off the tops if INDL ET. This piece is among the finest known of the die marriage, called "High Condition Census" by Robert Martin; it is the finest graded by PCGS for the INDL type. It is finer than the very decent PCGS EF-45 Twin Leaf coin, and about equal to the Ford specimen, ex Miller Sale, that was called only "Extremely Fine" but that is much finer.PCGS# 687239.From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier from our (Stacks) January 1969 sale, lot 66; our (Stacks) sale of the John L. Roper Collection, December 1983, lot 264; our sale of the Robert M. Martin Collection, November 2019 Baltimore Auction, lot 5318. Plated to illustrate the 1788 Draped Bust Left type in A Guide Book of United States Coins, 2023, p. 62. Plated in Randy Clarks "The Identification and Classification of Connecticut Coppers 1785-1788," pp. 635, 647, 665.
