1802/0 Half Cent

[MikeKing]

Truly a difficult difficult piece to find in decent condition and with eye appeal. Maybe every few years, one comes by, and I just could never afford it. Not that I can afford it now , but my numismatic demons, made my finger hit the bid key in a recent Heritage auction.

 

So here it is. In all it's glory. Tiny specks of verdigris which only a few years ago would have deeply disturbed me, mean absolutely nothing to me on this coin. Great planchet, considering that all the 1802 half cents were made from spoiled cent planchets. The surfaces are mostly smooth dark brown coloration. Just a beauty.

 

I took a few pics. The first two are using the regular lens on my camera (Coolpix 4300 that I can't wait to get rid of), and the other two of the whole coin were taken using a close up lens (cheap from ebay) so the whole coin isn't in focus, and the date, which is fascinating, of course.

 

 

 

I'll add a little bit more about this coin after I start dinner and fold the laundrey.

 

[dean1345]

Very rare half cent in Fine codition I believe. Great pickup.

[Just Bob]

Great coin, Mr. King!

[123cents]

Very nice Draped Bust Half Cent Overdate.

[WinstonWare]

Man that looks nice Mike!

[MBA101]

One of thee coolest overdates I have ever seen! Nice coin!

[EZ_E]

People who know me know that I'm not usually a big fan of varieties but this overdate is frickin' cool as heck!! A beautiful pickup, Mike!

[Mark T]

Great looking coin, I love the chocolate brown color. The Verdigris is very minor on this coin and should not be an issue but Heritage should have made mention of it. The Verdigris was not visible from The Heritage photos.

I have a nice original Bust Half that has minor Verdigris, this did not stop it from getting CAC certification.

 

[James_OldeTowne]

Folks who don't collect half-cents may not realize how woefully inadequate the supply of 1802/0s is. It is simply one of THE toughest early coppers to get for any date set! I once owned one that had near-VF details and fabulous planchet (for an 1802) - and a huge ragged gaping hole right in the middle of it.

 

I actually got that coin "fixed", and when it came back, I was stunned by how good of a repair job was done on it. Had I not known where the hole was to begin with, I would not have ever known it had been plugged. That coin did eventually end up going to an EAC collector (sold as "repaired", of course), and I am sure he still has it. They come around "nice" very, very seldom.

 

Great thread, and a fantastic coin to dedicate it to!

[Brando]

AWESOME overdate... sure would like one for my type set

[TomB]

On a coin such as this, where you find very few pieces acceptable at any level, the verdigris is something that can easily be overlooked.

[rbrown4]

Mike,

 

I will defer to my more knowledgable counterparts here on the specifics of this coin, but to me it looks wonderful and I would be proud to own it.

 

Rey

[bsshog40]

Mike,

 

I will defer to my more knowledgable counterparts here on the specifics of this coin, but to me it looks wonderful and I would be proud to own it.

 

Rey

 

Very nice Half cent there Mike.

 

BTW, Nice to hear from ya agin Rey!!

[bochiman]

I like it...a lot!

[BillJones]

Thas is a really exceptional example, Mike. Congratulations!

 

Back in the day when I was collecting half cents by die variety, I owned the 1802/0 half cent from the Garret collection. The coin was graded as a VF in Breen's Encylopedia, but the grading services refused to grade it. I eventually got it into an ANACS holder.

 

Here is the coin. It was plated in several of Dave Bowers books.

 

 

This is the "new reverse" (Cohen 2 variety) of the 1802 half cent. The "old reverse" (Cohen 1) is much scarcer and ever tougher to find in decent condition. This coin had the same reverse as the 1800 half cent. Here is a picture of the reverse of 1800.

 

 

Fewer than 20 examples of the 1802 C-1 half cents are known and the best examples are VF sharpness with problems. It's worth noting that the entire issue of 1802 half cents were made on cut down large cent planchets that were too poor to issue as large cents. This explains why the general quality of these coins is so low.

[MikeInFL]

Great half cents posted here! Thanks for sharing guys, and congrats on the NEWP, Mr. King...Mike

[James_OldeTowne]

Bill, those are both staggering coins! Thanks for allowing us to enjoy them.

[BillJones]

 

Thanks James!

 

I sold the 1802 a few years ago. I still have the 1800. It's one of my favorite years in the half cent series because each side has a "foot" in each century. Here is the coin. It got body bagged for "improper cleaning."

 

[GoCoins-migration]

 

That is one of the nicest 1802/0 half cent I have ever seen--for the grade--and I have owned a few, and examined many others.

[RI AL]

Wow, that 1802/0 is really neat. Actually, it's the first one I have ever seen other than in a tiny little black and white photo so thanks for posting the pictures, guys. Very, VERY neat.

 

RI AL

[Toad]

Absolutely stunning!

 

Ribbit