1804 Draped Bust Half Cent. C-12. Rarity-2. Crosslet 4, Stemless Wreath. MS-62 BN (PCGS). CAC.

Premium Mint State quality for the half cent variety enthusiast or high grade type collector. Hard and satiny surfaces are predominantly autumn-brown in color, yet with a bold swath of steely-copper patina over the right two-thirds of the obverse. Minimally marked for the assigned grade with a sharply executed strike and outstanding originality. Though many denominations with the 1804 date are well known rarities, the half cents are comparatively common, with 13 die varieties (one of which is often regarded as a die state) and seemingly infinite collectible die states. Several of the individual die varieties are extremely elusive, scarce in all grades and unknown in Mint State. While the Cohen-12 is not as common as the C-13 or C-10 in Mint State grades, it remains a popular choice for type collectors, especially since it is the only die pairing of the Crosslet 4, No Stems Guide Book variety. The stemless wreath on the reverse die of this variety is attributable to human error. The device punch that Mint employees created for the wreath design of 1802 to 1808 included only the leaves; the berries and stems had to be cut into each working die by hand. In the case of the reverse die of the 1804 C-12, the engraver simply forgot to add the stems. According to Ronald P. Manley (1998), this is the final die variety struck for the 1804-dated half cent.

PCGS# 1072.

Estimate: $ 1000