1831 1C N-3 Medium Letters, BN MS(PCGS#36997)

August 2020 U.S. Coins Auction

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

1094

等级

MS65BN

价格

31,679

详细说明

Frosty Gem Mint State 1831 N-3 Cent Tied for CC#1 in the Noyes Census 1831 Matron Head Cent. N-3. Rarity-1. Medium Letters. MS-65 BN (PCGS). CAC. Type:Matron Head. Design: Obv: A head of Liberty faces left with 13 stars around the border and the date 1831 below. Liberty is wearing a coronet inscribed LIBERTY, her hair tied into a bun at the back of her head by a plain cord. Rev: A circular wreath encloses the denomination ONE CENT with the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA around the border. Weight Standard: 10.89 grams. Diameter: 28-29 mm. Die Variety: Newcomb-3. Obv: Close date, the first 1 higher than the other digits. The inner point of star 6 is right of the tip of the coronet. This obverse die also appears in the 1831 N-2 pairing. Rev: Medium Letters in the legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. The letter E in CENT is boldly repunched at the top. The letter O in ONE leans left and the first A in AMERICA is even further canted to the left. This workhorse reverse die also appears in the 1834 N-5, 1835 N-1 and 1835 N-5 pairings. Along with N-2, N-4, N-5 and N-11, N-3 corresponds to the Medium Letters Guide Bookvariety of the 1831 Matron Head cent. Die State: Noyes B/B. Obv: The die is lightly worn with the denticulation fading, faint flowlines evident in the field, and some of the stars starting to draw toward the border. Rev: Die wear is also evident on the reverse, predominantly in the form of light flowlines in the field around the border. Edge: Plain. Mintage for the Issue: Federal records indicate a mintage of 3,359,260 cents during calendar year 1831. Some of the reverse dies used to strike the 1831-dated issue are shared with later-date issues in this series, as follows: -1831 N-2, 1835 N-12, 1835 N-13, 1835 N-18 -1831 N-4, 1833 N-1, 1833 N-4 -1831 N-5, 1832 N-1 By studying the progression of the reverse die states in these pairings, numismatic scholars have confirmed that the 1831 N-2 variety was struck in between the 1835 N-12 and N-13, the 1831 N-4 was struck in between the 1833 N-4 and 1833 N-1, and the 1831 N-5 was struck after the 1832 N-1. As such, the actual mintage from 1831-dated dies is higher than the 3,359,260-piece mintage reported for calendar year 1831 and includes coins reported for calendar years 1832, 1833 and 1835. Estimated Surviving Population for the Die Variety:Rarity-1: More than 1,500 coins in all grades. Strike: The central design elements on both sides are smartly impressed with bold to sharp detail. The obverse periphery is soft due to die state with the denticulation considerably faded, the stars blunt and mostly devoid of radial lines. The reverse is fully denticulated, although the impression on that side is drawn trivially to 11 o'clock with the border wider from 1 to 7 o'clock than elsewhere. Surfaces: This lustrous and frosty Gem is richly toned in medium brown, with intermingled steel-blue highlights that are more extensive on the reverse. That side of the coin also retains blushes of original pinkish-rose color in the protected areas around some of the design elements. The level of preservation is outstanding, both sides are virtually pristine with no detracting blemishes. For provenance tracing we mention a tiny nick on Liberty's cheek, minuscule carbon spot in the upper obverse field above the hair bun, and a splash of slightly warmer toning near the lower reverse border. Commentary: This is a high mintage issue, and with most of the die marriages rated R1 or R2 it is easy to see why the 1831 is among the more popular Matron Head cents for type purposes. Newcomb-3 is readily obtainable and there are also a number of high grade coins known. Few, however, are as technically superb and aesthetically pleasing as the ESM specimen offered here. It is tied for CC#1 in the Noyes census with an EAC grade of MS-65. The other CC#1 coin known to Noyes is the PCGS MS-66+ RB that realized $105,750 as lot 5171 in our Pogue V Sale of April 2017. Provenance: From the ESM Collection. Earlier ex Jerry A. Bobbe, February 2, 1975; Dr. Robert J. Shalowitz, April 6, 1977; C. Douglas Smith, May 8, 1983; R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr.; Ira & Larry Goldberg's sale of the R.E. "Ted" Naftzger, Jr. Collection, Part II, February 2009, lot 251. PCGS Population (all die marriages of the Medium Letters variety): 4; 0 finer in this category. PCGS# 36997. NGC ID: 225M. Click here for certification details from PCGS.