Lot 1426
Rare 1795 $10 Capped Bust. AU-50 Light hairlines. A frosty example of this first year of issue denomination. The surfaces retain some of the original mint bloom, and the strike is full throughout, especially on Liberty's minute curls and the eagle's wing feathers. As a design, the Capped Bust, Small Eagle was extremely important; Liberty's cap represents the freedom from the shackles of slavery, with a lock of her long hair wrapped curiously up from behind her head around the front of the cap. On the reverse, the proud eagle of America perches on a branch with 13 leaves (for the 13 original colonies) and holds a crowning wreath of peace and victory in its beak. The eagle's outstretched wings proudly display his strength and confidence, as America had at last removed the taxing ties of mother England in the decade prior and as a country was free to pursue its own ideals.
The eagle, as a denomination, was the highest value coin issued for circulation until 1850, and as such was immensely important. Great care was taken to show that this new fledgling country was not only viable, but equal to the world's great countries, both in leadership and honesty of coinage.
As to the particulars of this coin, there are some very faint hairlines noted in the obverse fields, probably a few tick marks were carefully smoothed down before Liberty's chin, but a glass is required to see the evidence. The reverse has a small tick mark on the rim above AT of STATES, and there are two pin-prick marks on either side of the first A of AMERICA. There is a diagnostic die lump near the edge by the first A of AMERICA too, as seen on all coins struck with this reverse die. On the reverse, there are minor adjustment marks, mostly around the edge, with a couple noted on the eagle's chest. Mercifully, most of the adjustment marks were obliterated by striking. Briefly, as the coin is struck, the first contact of the die to strike the planchet is the fields, as the dynamics of the strike unfold, the metal flows into the deep recesses of the die, devices like the eagle and lettering are filled by metal "flowing" as the dies are squeezed together. During the metal flow, most of the adjustment marks disappear, except where there is the least metal flow, on the devices and lettering. A large portion of gold and silver planchets were "adjusted", by filing off a small bit of metal, to bring the planchet into the allowed weight tolerance for the denomination. Mint workers were required to be bonded and severe penalties were in place if coins were produced which were underweight. Therefore, with the somewhat primitive equipment available in the Philadelphia Mint, it was easier to produce slightly heavy planchets for gold and silver production, then file off the excess and save the filings for making additional planchets, rather than making underweight planchets, and having to remelt, roll and cut the gold or silver over again.
This is an excellent reminder of those early days at the Philadelphia Mint, in a collector grade which everyone can appreciate.
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| Realized $17,250 |
