Hey Cointalk, Here is a 1832 half cent I need some help on. Surfaces appear very original, too original, with some rim scratch at 6 oclock and some corrosion or discoloration. What can I do to help this poor half cent? Also looking for attribution and comments. I am thinking XF/AU details? Thanks, also posted is a bust half I got recently. Half cent obverse is in 2 different lights.
It looks to be a pretty nice example of the Cohen-3 "Repunched UNITE[D] and STAT[ES]". It's one of the more common varieties (if you can call Half Cents "common"). Overall, I would give it "XF-40 details"...possibly XF-45 if you don't focus too much on the rim dings; certainly not AU. I can't tell from the pictures if the surface has been altered (looks like it, though).
Thanks for the help, also, I found out the rim scratch was a piece of felt, lifted right off. There are some minor hits but nothing like the piece of felt.
Your coin is in pretty rough condition so this one's tough. If I had to guess, I would say "not genuine". It's appears to be a reasonable try at a Cohen-3 (the only attribution it could be..."closest zeros"), but there are a few things out of place (imo). The first thing that caught my eye is that the fourth berry on the left branch has a clearly defined stem. The 1803 Cohen-3 has no stem to that berry. The "2" in the denominator doesn't seem quite right and the obverse hair line appears a bit off. Just my opinion...I could be wrong.
Alright here is another one. I didn't know if this was pain or pleasure, but everybody needs to see more half cents... The color is like a happy middle between the 2 pictures and is even. I am simply taking the pictures for detail and attribution.
I would say it's a nice XF-45 example with an old cleaning and very minimal rim damage (from what I can see). The obverse spot at the rim (8:00) may need some attention. The only question I have is about the triangular die gouge that's supposed to be on the jawline just below the ear...pointing towards the 13th star. I see "something" on your coin, but it doesn't appear as prominent as on other coins I've seen. Perhaps it's just the way the picture was taken. EDIT: 1851
The next one appears to be an evenly worn 1809 Cohen-3 "Wide [1][8][09]"...G4 I would say. Can't say I care for the reverse scratches...but I guess that comes with the "G4" territory.
Cohen-1 "Wide [ST]ATES". Looks like it has an early cleaning and nasty Obverse rim damage. I would say EF-45 details Reverse and net VF-20 Obverse (at best).
This would be a Cohen-3 "leaf beyond the STATE". This is the most common variety of 1828. The rarest one (more rare than the "12 Star") is the one where the high leaf is not beyond the STATE. I've cherry picked quite a few since few people know the difference. I would say F-12 details, harshly cleaned.
Since this is a half-cent post I'll add one I just picked up yesterday for little money... Thoughts anyone?
