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Message:: [QUOTE="johnmilton, post: 3605929, member: 101855"]When I was in high school, I dreamed of completing a set of Indian Cents. One of the key coins in that collection was the 1864-L bronze Indian Cent. Designer James Longacre created this variety when he decided to place his initial, “L”, discretely on a ribbon below the Indian’s headdress. The letter is so small that it takes a magnifying glass to see it, sometimes as high as 10X. It usually survives as the coin is worn down in circulation, although it is often hard or impossible to see on very worn examples. The Bronze 1864 Cent, without the “L”, was the first coin issued after the Philadelphia Mint switched from the copper-nickel cent in mid 1864. This coin is considered to be common, but it has been my experience that it is almost or perhaps as scarce as the piece with the initial. Here is a high grade example. [ATTACH=full]965408[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]965409[/ATTACH] Here is an example of the 1864-L cent and a close-up photo of the "L". [ATTACH=full]965410[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]965411[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]965412[/ATTACH] Another indicator of the variety in question is the tip of the bust. The rounded bust appears on the 1864 Bronze coin, and the pointed bust is noted on the 1864-L piece. 1864 Bronze, rounded bust [ATTACH=full]965413[/ATTACH] 1864-L, pointed bust [ATTACH=full]965414[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]