Draped Bust Large Cent

The Draped Bust Large Cent, designed by Robert Scot, is the fourth (and last) large cent type to be struck in the 1700’s.

Specifications

 * Designer: Robert Scot
 * Obverse Design: Liberty Bust
 * Reverse Design: Wreath with "One Cent"
 * Edge: Plain
 * Weight: ±10.9 grams
 * Diameter: ±28 millimeters
 * Composition:  Copper (100%)
 * Dates Minted: 1796-1807

Background
In fact, it’s the fourth U.S large cent type to appear in the brief time span of 1793 to 1796. The Draped Bust cent replaced the Liberty Cap large cent midway through 1796. This coin features a more feminine, youthful-looking Liberty Bust, her upper chest modesty covered with drapery. On the reverse is the same wreath and “One Cent” inscription used on the Wreath and Liberty Cap cent reverses. Thanks to increased collector demand, and the growing legion of early U.S. copper collectors, the 1796 Draped Bust cent (mintage 363,375) has soared in value over the last ten years. In Good, it now retails at $350—that’s about three times what it retailed some ten years ago!

History
At the closing years of the 18th century, the large cent reached it's prominence. There was a healthy mintage of 1797 and 1798 Draped Bust cents: 897,510 large cents were struck in 1797, and over 1.8 million in 1798. Collectors should be aware of the 1797 and 1798 Draped Bust large cents—especially the 1798 date. These dates represent the most affordable/obtainable 18th century U.S. Mint coins you’re ever going to come across. Then, now, and in the future – these two large cent dates will be everyone’s best chance to own a U.S.Mint coin struck during the lifetime of George Washington! The 1797 date is a little scarcer, a little more expensive, retailing at $130 in Good, while the 1798 retails $90 in Good. Again, in both cases, these are big jumps in value from what they were back in the mid-1990’s!

The 1799 Draped Bust large cent is a story unto itself. It is easily the rarest date of the series, with a mintage of just 42,540. Even so, collectors have a harder time tracking down this date than should be, even considering the low mintage. One story has it that a large number of 1799 large cents were lost at sea during a storm, as they were being shipped to Africa. Many experts dispute this story. In the end though, it’s still not clear why so few 1799 large cents are around. This famous rarity came to light back in the early 1800’s when a noted collector was searching for a 1799 cent, the date of his birth. He couldn’t find one, so he advertised for one, thus alerting the general public to the scarcity of this coin.

History-wise, this large cent has a lot going for it—I already mentioned that it was circulating during the last three years of George Washington’s life. It was also in circulation when Thomas Jefferson made the famous Louisiana Purchase of 1803. It was also in circulation when Lewis and Clark were exploring the American West in the years 1804-06. Heavily worn or not, this classic early copper typically passed through many hands before it came was retired. Each one, worn or not, is worth owning and worth pondering over.

Collecting
Despite being an early U.S. coin last struck 200 years ago, collectors won’t have a hard time finding a Draped Bust large cent. They’ll just have a hard time finding a good one. Not “good” as in the grade, “Good,” but good as in better than average. Think of this large cent type as “The Shadow,” because that’s how most of them have survived to the present day—as worn, shadowy coins.

The other rare date in the Draped Bust cent series is the 1804. Just 96,500 were struck. That’s about the same mintage as that of the 1803 half cent. But while the 1803 half cent retails just $45 in Good, the 1804 cent retails $1,400 in Good! That tells you two things: one, it’s a lot harder to find surviving 1804 cents than 1803 half cents, and two, there is infinitely more demand for the 1804 large cent! The one other better date in the series is the 1806. The 1806 had a fairly small mintage of 348,000 and retails $70 in Good. The other dates in the Draped Bust cent series, 1800-1803, 1805, and 1807, were all struck in the low millions or just under 1 million. These dates retail around $60 in Good.

The Draped Bust cent series is one series where Early Copper specialists have identified many varieties over the years. There are the various reverse types of 1796 (the 1794 type, the 1795 type, the 1796 type); there is the 1797 ‘with stems’ and ‘stemless’ varieties ( the stemless is the rare variety); there is 1798 Style 1 Hair and Style 2 Hair types; there is the 1800/79 overdate; there is the 1801 “LIHERTY” error; there are the 1803 large and small reverse fractions (underneath the wreath); the 1807/6 overdate—both the large and small numerals. And I believe that’s just SOME of the varieties in this series!

Grading
In truth, most Draped Bust large cents you’ll encounter won’t even make the grade of Good! Typically, most Draped Bust cents show up with the Liberty bust devoid of any detail—hence, the “shadow” look. Even more typically, most or ALL of the word, “LIBERTY” above the bust will be worn off—this particular device seems to be the first thing to wear off on these cents! Believe me, any Draped Bust large cent you can find with a full “LIBERTY” is a winner—or at least on its way to being a winner! And any Draped Bust cent that’s better than a shadow – any kind of eyes, mouth and hair detail visible – is an exceptional piece.

I’ve mainly quoted the “Good” grades. Look what happens when you find a Draped Bust cent in Fine condition: the retail value for a common date jumps from $60 to $160. But look what happens when you have a common-date Draped Bust cent one grade up from Fine, to Very Fine: the value takes another leap, to $300! Draped Bust cents in Extra Fine condition are really few and far between, because a common date (like 1802) retails $775 in Extra Fine! Clearly, most Draped Bust cents circulated a LOT over the years. Few were saved in nicer condition.

Mints

 * Philadelphia Mint (No mintmark)