![]() Counterfeits are known, and a number of fairly deceptive pieces dated 1799 surfaced in the early 1980s. On weakly or irregularly struck coins, these design details may not be fully brought up. On the reverse, wear first shows on the clouds, then the eagle’s breast feathers. In high grades, signs of friction first begin to show on the highest points of the hair above the forehead and along the shoulder and bust line of Liberty. Other varieties will show occasional areas of weakness due to die breakage. ![]() Certain die varieties are always weak on the stars above the eagle’s head because of die failure. Grading Draped Bust dollars can be a challenge. These fantasy pieces are highly prized by collectors. Sometime between 1836 and the late 1850s, modern looking proof dollars appeared with the dates 1801, 1802, and 1803. No true proofs are known from this series, but like the 1804 dollar, Mint officials were only too pleased to oblige collectors in later years. Only 15 specimens are known of all three types. The Class II and Class III 1804s “restrikes” were produced in the late 1850s for prominent collectors of the day. These were the so-called “original” or Class I 1804 dollars. coins were needed for diplomatic gifts, the Draped Bust design was resurrected and dated 1804, as that was the last year the dollar coin was officially authorized. However, thirty years later when several presentation sets of U.S. While the Mint struck dollars in 1804, all were produced from leftover dies dated 18, and no dollars were struck with the date 1804. One of the most famous coins ever struck is considered a part of the Draped Bust series, the 1804 dollar. The extra letter was polished away, but only the right portion of the letter was effaced, leaving what appears to be a letter I, thus creating the well-known AMERICAI variety. In 1800 a die was cut that had an extra letter A at the end of AMERICA. The error was discovered before any coins were struck, and rather than discard the die, the clouds were enlarged over the offending stars, covering all but the tips of these extra star points. A working die was produced that had 15 stars, rather than the required 13. An interesting blunder occurred in the reverse stars in 1799. ![]() No one knows exactly why the star patterns were changed, but the earlier “cross pattern” configuration is generally the scarcer of the two. Known as the “arc pattern,” it had two parallel rows of stars: the top row had six, the second row five stars, followed by one star on either side of the eagle’s head. The earlier configuration, known as the “cross pattern” was a modification of The Great Seal of the United States, with the stars arranged in two triangular groups of six joined by a single star in the middle. On 1798 dollars there are two different patterns of stars on the reverse above the eagle’s head. But there are several important design changes in the series that are of interest to a wide range of collectors. There are dozens of die varieties, most involving only a minute difference in the placement of the stars, numerals, letters, or other design elements. This more warlike placement of the arrows was repeated on all heraldic eagle coins of the period.ĭuring the six years Draped Bust Heraldic Eagle dollars were struck, 1,153,709 coins were produced, all in the Philadelphia mint. One oversight in the iconography of the Heraldic Eagle reverse though, was in the placement of the arrows in the eagle’s right claw the more honorable placement in heraldry leaving the olive branch in the left or less honorable claw. In 1798, the young hatchling eagle seen on the reverse of the earlier dollar was replaced with an older and more naturalistic eagle, and one that was more in keeping with heraldic iconography. This design marked a maturing of the “young” Liberty of the preceding Flowing Hair design to a more “matronly” concept of the emblematic national symbol. coinage designs to “world class” stature. The Draped Bust dollar obverse was designed by noted artist Gilbert Stuart in an attempt to elevate U.S. The new press was able to properly stamp out the large sized dollar coins and include all the design details in the finished product. When a new and improved coin press arrived at the Mint in Philadelphia in the spring of 1795, it made improvements possible both in the quantity of coins produced as well as their quality. The design modifications of 1798 were actually grounded in events that began three years before. ![]() This maturity of the United States was evident in the late 1790s not only by America’s refusal to be pulled into the war between England and France it can also be seen in the changes in the nation’s unit of currency, the dollar. Silver Coins: When They Ended and What They’re Worth
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