Hi. I know that if something is too good to be true that it probably isn't ......... but I was still sufficiently tempted to purchase this coin from an Irish seller on ebay, who had misattributed it as the much more common 1795 "halfpenny" of similar (but not identical) design. It appears to me to be a 1795 dated Liberty & Security "penny". But they are so rare that I still find it very difficult to believe that this isn't a copy or fake. The obverse is far more worn than the reverse. Any clues as to what I should look for to see if this is genuine and not a cast or other copy please? All help gratefully received!
It's pretty clearly the more common half-penny since the penny has Washington facing the other direction. A quick glance at the Red Book will show you the difference quite well.
With respect, unlike the undated 1795 penny, the dated 1795 penny faces right ... see Whitman W-11085. There are slight differences between the dated halfpenny and the dated penny ... the penny has a period before George and after Washington; the branch on the reverse points to the Y in the penny but between the T and the Y in the halfpenny; the hair falling to the neck on the obverse is noticeably thicker on the penny than on the halfpenny; there are raised circles either side of the date on the penny. The red book doesn't illustrate the dated penny ...... this might explain the seller's misattribution.
Ah, yes, you are correct. I had used the Notre Dame Colonial Coins website for a quick check of the piece and they did not have the dated issue listed or imaged where I looked. That is my mistake. The edge appears to have the correct lettering for the dated penny so I would have to think there is a real possibility you have a legitimate token.
Thanks, Tom. If this coin is genuine, how would it be graded? The obverse appears corroded but the reverse is sharper even than appears to be the case in the photos. And by how much (I suspect it will be a lot!) will the condition of the obverse affect the value?
