1799 Draped Bust Cent. S-189. Rarity-2. VF-30 (PCGS). CMQ.

The "perfect date" counterpart to the Sheldon-188 overdate cent offered above, this is a handsome mid-grade example of the key date 1799 issue. Surfaces are mostly hard and tight with some good gloss, both sides presenting as quite smooth during in-hand inspection. Even close inspection with a loupe fails to reveal more than a few tiny, well scattered pits and similarly trivial marks. An area of roughness on the reverse engages the letters AM in AMERICA, and there are a few extremely trivial speckles of ancient, inactive corrosion over and above the letter N in ONE on the same side that are mentioned solely for accuracy. Universally bold Choice VF detail with all design elements bold and some sharper definition remaining in the recesses of Liberty's portrait. Both sides are richly toned in deep steely-copper, the obverse with blushes of warmer golden-brown. Breen Die State IV. While surpassed by a number of specimens in the Bland and Noyes census listings, this coin is still finer than most 1799 S-189 cents extant, most of which are well worn, if not also impaired. There is much to recommend this example to advanced early copper enthusiasts.

PCGS# 1443. NGC ID: 2246.

From the Olds Collection.