1858 Flying Eagle Penny
1856 marked an auspicious 12 months within the history of the US Mint. From the very beginning, one cent items had been a staple of United States coins. Everybody knew their look and their feel. Everybody was comfortable with the coin, until 1856.
Since the beginning of US coinage, the face of the one cent piece had featured an outline of the goddess Liberty. Admittedly, there had been a number of different depictions of Liberty, with each providing its coin with an interesting name. Flowing Hair Cents had been produced by the US Mint from 1793 by 1796, after they had been changed by Draped Bust Cents. The Classic Head Cent design was the design produced from 1808 via 1814 when it was replaced by the Coronet Head Cent. Finally, the Braided Hair Cent took middle stage in 1839. It was additionally known as the “Foolish Head” or the “Booby Head” Cent. The Braided Hair Cent was produced by way of 1857.
People began to object to carrying around these coins. Some individuals stated the coins had been too massive, with a diameter of 27.5 millimeters (merchants complained that the cash “clogged up” their tills). There were complaints that the cash were too heavy, weighing in at a hefty 10.89 grams. The public seemed to be prepared for a change in its pennies.
In 1856 the US Mint began producing a smaller, lighter one cent coin. The Flying Eagle Cent was the primary of what collectors now confer with as “Small Cents” (weighing 4.7 grams with a diameter of 19 millimeters) contrasted with the one cent coins heretofore produced being dubbed “Giant Cents.”
The public didn’t like the coin. The Flying Eagle Cent did not encompass pure copper, as had all one earlier one cent coins. It was 88% copper and 12% nickel. The lighter shade brought about the public to derogatorily consult with the brand new cent because the “white cent.” Individuals were not pleased with the design either. Though design on the obverse (or face) of James Barton Long acre’s coin depicts an Eagle in Flight, people sometimes referred to the coin because the “Buzzard Cent.”
Officials on the US Mint have been embarrassed. They shortly made plans to redesign the coin. Longacre was commissioned to supply the new design. The Eagle was eliminated, and Liberty returned to the front of the one cent coin, this time wearing a Native American headdress. The Indian Head Cent stays one of the most standard cash ever produced by the US Mint, whereas the Flying Eagle Cent took its place among the coins with the briefest mintage in US history…just two years (1857-1858).
Incidentally, for those who occur to find a Flying Eagle Cent bearing the date 1856, you’ll be effectively-suggested to take the coin to an skilled to have it evaluated. The 1856 cash had been solely produced as examples to be presented to Congress and other officials to encourage them to assist the coin’s acceptance. Once the vote was taken, legislators have been supposed to return the coins to the US Treasury. The cash were presupposed to be destroyed, and minting of the Flying Eagle Cent to begin in 1857.
Somehow, not the entire cash made their way back to the Mint. Evidently a few of them had been kept as souvenirs by numerous people. The coins’ rarity brought on their collector’s value to soar. Now, even probably the most mediocre specimens of the 1856 Flying Eagle Cent sell for in extra of $5,000, with the nicest of those cash expected to bring effectively in excess of $100,000. (The Professional Coin Grading Service lists the worth of the highest grade Flying Eagles they’ve certified as $a hundred and fifty,000.) Needless to say, counterfeiters have taken notice of those numbers and have taken steps to try to defraud people by producing and selling fakes.
So a set of Flying Eagle Cents consists of three coins . . . the 1857, and two varieties (Giant Letters and Small Letters) of the 1858. You should purchase engaging specimens of all three cash for a total of lower than $200.
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