1841 Token HT-21 Copper Daniel Webster, BN MS(PCGS#77220)

August 2019 ANA U.S. Coins Auction Rosemont, IL

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

242

等级

MS63BN

价格

4,066

详细说明

1841 Daniel Webster. HT-21, Low-63, DeWitt-CE 1838-5, W-11-640a. Rarity-2. Copper. Plain Edge. 29 mm. MS-63 BN (PCGS). Coin alignment. Attractive golden-brown patina with hints of pale pink and powder blue. Advanced obverse die state with heavy bisecting crack from 8 o'clock to 2 o'clock. Both sides display attractive satiny luster, the surfaces overall smooth with only a few faint carbon spots precluding an even higher grade. A rough, shallow planchet void in the reverse field at the ship's two rearmost masts is almost certainly the result of foreign matter adhering to the die, as this piece is a close match to the Dice-Hicks specimen in that regard. With Mint State examples available by Hard Times tokens standards, HT-21 is popular with specialists as well as more generalized collectors seeking a single high grade piece to represent this series. Easy credit with paper currency vs. tighter credit with metallic currency (silver and gold coins) furnished the theme for this and other Hard Times tokens. The sentiment on the reverse arose in 1797 and 1798 during the John Adams administration. French foreign minister Talleyrand stated that attacks on American shipping would be stopped if payments were made. This was part of the so-called XYZ Affair in which the names of certain French officials were replaced by these code letters. South Carolina Congressman Robert Goodloe Harper proposed a toast that became a rallying cry in America, "Millions for defence, not one cent for tribute." This was later echoed when Barbary pirates in the Mediterranean Sea demanded money for the safety of American ships. Provenance: From our Baltimore Auction of March 2014, lot 134. Click here for certification details from PCGS.