Can anyone see enough on this 1801 for attribution? I think I see a serif on the first 1 of the date and the blunt second 1 making it a Type 1, maybe. Beyond that, I can't make out enough to identify it.
Huh, I didn't know there were different types. I know there is this https://www.usacoinbook.com/coins/5670/large-cents/draped-bust/1801-P/all-varieties/
This cannot be done w/o either being an advance LC collector/dealer OR you have the BOOKS! The reverse has the most detail so let's start there. Unfortunately, there are no die breaks so it will take more time. Looking at the position of the stem end and the "A," the only reverses with this line up are: 216 217 220 221 217 and 220 are the closest match so far. Now let's pick something else. How about the position of the top leaves with the "S." 220 is eliminated. Let's look up the area under "AM" using the berry and leaf point. 216 is eliminated. Now, out of the final two, I'll pick S-221
@Insider , thanks for taking the time and effort to identify this. A friend dropped this and a handful of cull Matron Head cents on me the other day so I used the opportunity to try to hone my somewhat lamentable skills. I am certainly not the former but I avidly collect reference materials. For cents, though, I only have the Bowers/Whitman book on halfcents and large cents, Sheldon's Penny Whimsy, and John Wright The Cent Book.
Bowers, in his Whitman book on half cents and large cents, divides the 1801's into Type 1 and 2, based on the "1"s in the date. The Type 1 has a full upper serif on the first one and "blunt" 1 for the second one. The Type 2 has full serifs on both 1s. I don't know if any other writer has adopted this convention.
Just me. I have found Penny Wise to be useless. I'm not intelligent enough to use it; however at one time it was all we had. The intro is a must read for all collectors! Newcomb was all we had at one time and I find it of very limited use anymore. The John Wright Book is very good. At one time that and the 2 volume Noyes set covered everything enough. Today, the Noyes Set (6 volumes) is all you need. You can buy individual volumes covering the dats you collect. They are expensive; however, they will become REALLY expensive when they are out of print. I don't have the Bowers/Whitman book and don't intend to get it. Therefore, I cannot comment on it.
Agree with Insider- blunt "1's", "01" higher than "18", stemless 1st pair of leaves on the right. Not sure what the OP means by "Type 1".
Odd, I initially settled on S-216 at a cursory glance. Everything seems to match up to S-221 upon review. Namely the position of LIBERTY and the long berry stems.
I came up with 221 as well. 216 and 221 share the same obv. key difference on the reverse is the position of the leaf point below the O in OF. Below the cent of the O on 216 and below the right side on 221. Position of the leaf point below the D is also different but hard to see on this coin. What annoys me on this variety is the guide typically just say Corrected fraction 1/100 over 1/000. But low grade coins usually do not have the denominator visible.
I probably should not have used the term "Type". Here is what Bowers says in the book A Guide Book of Half Cents and Large Cents, Whitman Publishing, C2015, quoted verbatim: "The cents of 1801 can be divided into two groups, as Dr. William H. Sheldon and Walter Breen divided them in the past. The first group has the first 1 in the date with a serif, while the second 1 in the date lacks this feature. As the 1 with serif is the style of 1800, and as the second 1 in all instances is blunt, it can be assumed that the Serif 1's were made as incomplete dies with the date as 180, probably in 1800, when the Serif 1 was still in use. In 1801 the dies were completed using the Blunt 1 punch whose use was initiated that year. The second group comprises dies with both 1's blunt, which were created entirely in 1801." Thanks for everybody's input.
