1785 CT 1/2P Bust Right, African Head, BN AU50BN 认证号21984925, PCGS号319

Ron Guth

The 1785 "African Head" Connecticut Copper is so-named because of the coarse appearance of the hair and the enlarged lips on the bust on the obverse.  Two varieties make up this separate type: Miller 4.1-F.4 and Miller 4.2-F.6.  The former is common; the latter is extremely rare.  Because of the different styles of the obverse bust and the reverse figure, and because the punches used for these varieties differ from the usual 1785 Bust Right varieties, some have proposed that the African Heads might be contemporary counterfeits.  However, their weight is above-normal for a contemporary counterfeit, which argues for a legitimate strike.  Either way, the African Heads have been accepted as an integral part of the 1785 varieties and their listing as a separate variety in the "Redbook" gives them full, collectible status.

No Mint State African Heads are known.  All of the examples in the PCGS CoinFacts Condition Census are About Uncirculated, ranging from AU50 to AU58.