1838 large cent.

My oldest coin so far.

 

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Very nice circulated large cent.

 

Congrats, a nice looking clean coin full of history. I wish coins could talk.

 

You and me both

 

Thank you

 

Thank you

 

I believe it is a N-14 which is an R-4+ coin, the third scarcest variety of the year. Not worth a large premium, but maybe 50% more than the common variety money.

 

Where can I go to learn this I had no clue it was even a third scarcest

 

That's gracious of you to give it an N-16 I found where to read about this and I will be sending it off to be graded and thank you

 

Not really a candidate for grading but a nice circulated example IMHO

 

Ok

 

Nice coin. I would not send the coin in for grading.

 

Ok I haven't sent any in yet and I am supposed to get the first 5 coins sent for free just thought it would be a good candidate

 

So it's worth 2 cents

 

More like $20

 

That coin has really seen a lot of history and it was minted in an era of economic ruin. The Panic of 1837 sent shock waves throughout the global economy and prosperity didn't return again for some time. Newly elected president Van Buren had only held office for 14 or so days when everything suddenly exploded. Some blamed Andrew Jackson's veto of the Second Bank of the United States' Charter; others said that the 1830s resembled the 1920s in wild speculation and general irresponsible excess. Whatever the cause, those were glum days. Anyone in that time would have probably loved to find and possess that cent. Things did look a little better in 1838, so perhaps the coin saw some relatively happier times.

 

I said N-14 not N-16, big difference. An N-16 in that condition just might be worth sending in. But it wouldn't have to be because it would find a ready buyer raw.

 

Sorry typo thought that's what I put

 

Hey I took this coin to a dealer and he said there's only one variety of this year can you point me to a book or somewhere too look

 

There is only one variety listed in the Redbook (A Guidebook of United States coins by R. S. Yeoman) There are 16 varieties for this year.

The 1838 large cent is considered to be part of the group called the "Middle dates" this is the group from 1816 to 1839. There are three books that cover this range. United States Large Cents 1816 - 1839 by William Noyes, The Cent Book by John Wright, and United States Copper Cents 1816 - 1857 by Howard Newcomb. The Newcomb book was the first published, it came out in 1944 and the varieties are known by their Newcomb numbers. The Cent Book and United States Large Cents 1816 - 1839 both came along about the same time in 1992. The Noyes and Wright books are both excellent and are a little easier to use than Newcomb's book. (Personally I prefer Wrights book) Newcomb's book is readily available in reprint form and costs form $25 to $50. Wright's is much harder to find but is available from the author for $100. Noyes book is difficult to find used but is available from literature dealer Charlie Davis for $170.

If you don't want to go that route though, Newcomb and Wright's books are availble for download online for free.

Newcomb's book
https://archive.org/details/USCopperCentsNewcomb/page/n0

Wright's book
https://archive.org/details/centbook181618390000john/page/n0