1776 Copper New Hampshire, BN MS (PCGS#286)
The March 2012 Baltimore Auction
- 拍卖行
- Stack's Bowers
- 批号
- 4005
- 等级
- VG10
- 价格
- 1,086,824
- 详细说明
- 1776 New Hampshire Copper. W-8395. VG-10 (PCGS). Secure Holder. <strong>154.9 grains. Cast copper.</strong> Obverse with standing pine tree at center, AMERICAN LIBERTY around; prior to 1776 (and even today), New Hampshire was known for its tall, straight, and sturdy pine tree forests often referred to as the "king's wood," from which most of the masts for the king's Royal Navy were manufactured -- "kingswood" is a popular name even today in business and other enterprises within the Granite State, as in Kingswood Regional High School in Wolfeboro. Reverse with harp somewhat similar to that on Irish halfpennies of the era, but with no legends though the original legislation called for the date 1776 on the harp side.<br />
Deep golden tan surfaces with light and uniform porosity, some caused no doubt by age and some from the production of the <em>cast</em> copper planchet. An old vertical scratch is seen to the viewer's right of the central pine tree motif, a centuries-old mark that readily establishes its identity. The obverse peripheral legends are completely readable despite being moderately weak in places.<br />
The history of this rare copper New Hampshire coinage is fairly well documented in the literature, especially in Sylvester S. Crosby's <em>Early Coins of America</em> (1875), which reproduces the enabling legislation in the New Hampshire House of Representatives, March 13, 1775, and includes other valuable information relating to the origin of the first of the state copper coins.<br />
The issue was intended "for the benefit of small change," as Continental currency bills were "so large." It was recommended that 108 of the coppers be equal in value from one Spanish milled dollar -- thus setting the weight as about twice that of a British halfpenny and perhaps characterizing the New Hampshire copper as a penny (although no denomination was specified). Walter Moulton was empowered to coin as many as might amount to 100 pounds in weight, subject when
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