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1804 Half Cent
1804 Half Cent
1804 Half Cent

1804 Half Cent "Spiked Chin" variety

$ 200.11

Availability: 77 in stock
  • Circulated/Uncirculated: Circulated
  • Condition: 1804 Half Cent "Spiked Chin" variety, with a light "chin spike" and clear "washboard" die breaks typical of the deteriorating obverse die in the minting run of that die pair.
  • Year: 1804
  • Certification: Uncertified
  • Strike Type: Business
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
  • Denomination: 1/2C
  • Mint Location: Philadelphia

    Description

    1804 Half Cent "Spiked Chin" variety.  These specimens of that non-standard variety were made when the obverse die deteriorated and began to break in a "washboard" pattern over the coin obverse's right field.  Increasingly with each minted coin, this breaking obverse die started to leave a horizontal "chin spike" on Liberty, which was really the first wave of a  "washboard" of wavy, horizontal die breaks  This die deterioration must have continued and worsened the error until the obverse die broke completely.
    This specimen, offered here for you, has the chin spike, though it is a bit weak, and clearer washboard waves below it.  So I shined lights at different angles to showcase Liberty's spike in the obverse photos.  This variety has always fascinated collectors, maybe because such errors were arguably more typical early in our American minting experience, maybe because a defacing of Liberty is as rare as it is bizarre, and maybe both!  This coin, with the intrigue, mystery, and fascination that goes with it, is offered for you here.