1806 Draped Bust 1/2 cent anomaly 1 1

[DrGr]

According to PGCS, who quotes  "American Half Cents, Second Edition" by Roger S. Cohen, Jr.," the The Small 6 obverse is found only with a With Stems reverse (emphasis is mine).  However, I just recently inherited a fairly valuable collection that included an 1806 1/2 cent. To the naked eye, and under magnification, it is obvious that this coin has a small 6 on the obverse (there is a sizeable gap between the 6 and the draped bust), and there are NO stems on the reverse. zero. nada. This is in stark contrast to the the authority of Cohen and the claims of PGCS. According to these experts, by definition, a small 6 has a gap, and the large 6 touches/is stamped onto the draped bust. It is obvious from the pics that my coin has a small 6 on the obverse, BUT NO STEMS on the reverse. What do I do next? Did I miss something here?  FYI: the first 3 pics of of my coin, the last 2 were taken from PGCS's website illustrating the differences.

Edited March 4 by DrGr
to illustrate my point about large/small/with/without stems

[Sandon]

   Welcome to the NGC chat board.

   I don't know what page on the PCGS website you read, and I don't have a copy of the Cohen half cent book, but every source I checked, as well as my own memory, indicates that 1806 Small 6 half cents come both with and without stems. The standard "Redbook" (2023 edition at p. 91) lists three categories of 1806 half cents described as "Small 6, Stems" (worth a significant premium), "Small 6, Stemless", and "Large 6, Stems", with the latter two categories pricing the same in all listed grades. PCGS Coinfacts lists the 1806, Small 6 half cent at https://www.pcgs.com/coinfacts/coin/1806-1-2c-small-6-no-stems-bn/1093.  See also Draped Bust Half Cents (1800-1808) | VarietyPlus® | NGC (ngccoin.com).  The Cohen die variety designation for this variety is C-1, and it is apparently the most common variety of 1806 half cent. It is the 1806, Large 6, that is only known to exist with stems.

[DrGr]

I can't thank you enough for your research and comprehensive response. After googling this coin, I focused in on coinfacts but, as a loyal client of NGC, I wanted to check out its forums. The page in particular is, https://www.pcgs.com/coinfacts/coin/1806-1-2c-small-6-stems-bn/1096. Ron Guth states, "1806 Half Cents are found with two different obverses: Small 6 and Large 6. On the Small 6, the 6 of the date is completely separated from the bust; on the Large 6, the top of the 6 is embedded in the bust. The Small 6 obverse is found only with a With Stems reverse."  Again, the emphasis is mine to illustrate my confusion.  Thanks again for your assistance. 

[Coinbuf]

From your photo your coin appears (to me) to be a large 6 not a small 6, what does the NGC label say?

[Sandon]

On 3/3/2024 at 10:58 PM, Coinbuf said:

From your photo your coin appears (to me) to be a large 6 not a small 6, what does the NGC label say?

   It's clearly a "Small 6". On the "Large 6", the 6 protrudes into the bust as in the photo posted above. (A "Large 6" without stems would be quite a discovery.) NGC apparently requires payment of the $18 VarietyPlus fee to attribute an 1806 half cent as anything other than just an "1806".

   To the topic author--Either Mr. Guth misquoted the Cohen reference, or the Cohen reference is misworded, as that reference itself lists and describes the common (for a half cent) 1806 Small 6, No Stems variety. Even the more reliable resources such as Coinfacts (and even the "Redbook") contain some errors.  

   For future reference, please post topics of this nature in the "U.S., World, and Ancient Coins" forum or the "Newbie Coin Collecting Questions" forum, where they may receive better attention. The NGC Registry forum is for topics pertaining to the NGC certified coin registry.  

   

 

 

   

[DrGr]

With my limited knowledge and the wonders of the internet, I too came to the conclusion that this is a small 6. It's pretty obvious, especially under magnification. That's why I was confused with the references and notations of Coinfacts. If we can't trust them for legitimate, researched data, then who(m) can we trust? As an aside, as a doctor, I have difficulty with accepting, carte blanche, long-standing errors in the research and publication of old coinage. Perhaps I'm being naive but I figure that countless numbers of people have had 218 years to figure out the nuances of an 1806 coin. It the "experts" are going to put info out there, it needs to be trustworthy. Or, at the very least, posted with the caveat of uncertainty.  The excerpt that I quoted from Coinfacts was quite explicit in stating that, the Small 6 obverse is found only with a With Stems reverse." 

Please accept my apologies for venting, I'm new to this and truly appreciate your expertise and guidance.

As for posting topics of this nature in the "U.S., World, and Ancient Coins" forum or the "Newbie Coin Collecting Questions" forum, where they may receive better attention."  I will do so.  Again, I'm new to this and trying to find my way. I'm not even sure how I made I made it to this forum...:-)