It looks like the outline of one to me. If not that, it may be a Draped Bust or Classic Head, but I did get this pretty cheap either way. What do you think?
What are the dimensions and weight? The straight line at the bottom (as it appears from the way you are holding it) reminds me of a British penny or half penny.
The dimensions are roughly the size of a quarter. I'm not sure as to weight, as I 2x2'd it after taking the pictures.
A modern quarter is 24.3 mm diameter. A draped or capped bust cent is about 29mm. A British half penny from 1806-1831 is about 28mm, from 1831 through 1841 about 27mm, and from 1860 until they stopped making them in 1970 25mm, as best I can tell from measuring my half pennies and the pictures in Krause. The actual diameters of the older coins can vary a little. Is there anything left on the other side of your coin?
I would say no. What's left of the rims looks like they were upset. The first mint didn't do it that way.
Sadly the back is worn completely out. You're probably right. When I find a ruler, I'll measure it, but I think that it is too big to be even a half cent.
Note that the rim is above the primary field of the piece. If it were worn to the surface condition it has now the rim would be worn to the same level. I don't think it is a coin at all.
I know right? I always think of the edge as the furthest part from the coin and the rim as the side angle.
For reference, here's one I have, that I had once thought might be a blank. Note the sharp thin rim around one side, like yours, and similarity of texture. The rim on the other side is more rounded, which is why it would be good to see yours. The edge would help too.
You could take it out of the 2x2 and get precise measurements of diameter, thickness, and weight, and images of the edge. But I don't think it's a coin.
This is what I love about CT. Everyone pulling together, sharing their expertise, knowledge and reasoning to solve a mystery. Thank you, one and all! (See, I'm learning. I didn't say "all y'all").
The edge is important. Liberty Cap cents (and some British Conder tokens of the era) had lettered edges. Now, on a worn-out example that lettering would likely be mostly gone, but there might still be enough trace of it remaining to be conclusive.
The edge lettering was pushed very deep into the coin and would be last to go. I find it really hard to believe that the lettering would gone unless you put the coin on a grinder and filed it all of all the way around.
Admittedly, my in-hand personal experience of Liberty Cap cents is limited. I’ve only owned one or two over the decades. I confess I had to check the Redbook to remember if that type had the lettered edge or not. I thought I recalled that. At least I was right about that.
The switch from the lettered edge to the plain edge was during the last week of 1795. The lettered edge ‘95s were struck from October to late December. The plain edge coins were struck into the first three months of 1796. Although the law said a coin was supposed to bear the year it was struck, dies were expensive. The mint didn’t discard them just because the year had changed. Sometimes the mint made the dies into over dates, but that often reduced the useful life of the die.
