Pre-Long Beach Auction #84

1842 N-7 R3 Large Date MS60. Slightly faded mint red mellowing to light steel brown on the highpoints with more than half the red remaining. Overtones of violet and steel show on the reverse, mostly on the right side. This cent would rate a significantly higher grade but there is a planchet lamination flaw in the dentils from star 2 to star 3 (as struck). MDS, die state b. The points up from the top of the E in AMERICA are gone but the segmented line under ME is clear. Softly struck, as usual on this variety, at the hair over the ear, the hair buns, and the shoulder. (A fully struck example is unknown.) A nice cent in spite of the planchet defect. CC#9 in the Grellman census. Comes with an important provenance.
Estimated Value $400-UP.
Ex Stack's 1/16/1990:1200-Tony Terranova-Wes Rasmussen, McCawley & Grellman Auctions/Superior 2/8/1998:32-Chris McCawley-R. S. Brown, Jr., McCawley & Grellman Auctions/Superior 6/2/2002:101-Daniel W. Holmes, Jr., McCawley & Grellman Auctions/Goldbergs 1/30/2011:40 (the Brown and Holmes collection envelopes and the last 3 lot tickets are included).