Lot 2563
1796 Draped Bust Dime. . JR-2, Rarity-4. PCGS Genuine. Our grade is sharpness of AU with slightly porous surfaces. Well struck and quite pleasing. Although the dime is an essential part of the decimal coinage system, it was one of the last coins issued by the United States Mint when operations first began. By the time it made its debut in 1796, as the Draped Bust/Small Eagle dime, the Mint had already been making copper cents and half cents for three years; silver dollars, half dollars and half dimes for two years; and even two gold coins-the eagle and half eagle-for a year. The only other coins delayed, like the dime, until 1796, were the quarter dollar and quarter eagle.
JR-2 is a scarcer variety promptly identified by the R in LIBERTY, which is entered high and too far to the left, crowding the E. Also known as the "6-Berry Reverse," the inside berry directly outside the eagle's left (facing) wing on the reverse is doubled. According to the John Reich's Society (1984), examples of this variety constitute approximately 5-10% of all extant 1796 Dimes.
Estimated Value $7,000 - 8,000.
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| Realized $8,913 |
