| Description: |
148.2 grains. 28.8 mm. A desirable mid-grade specimen of this rare variety, one not
included in the Ryder-Boyd-Ford collection. Attractive chocolate brown with glossy
surfaces. The reverse is essentially smooth with only trivial roughness at SA and TT of
MASSACHUSETTS. The obverse shows a large area of roughness at lower left side but only
minor scattered granularity otherwise, still pleasing and attractive. The detail in the
Indian's face suggests an EF grade despite the softness at central obverse, and some may
be willing to accord this piece a higher grade assignment. As such, it may threaten the
low end of the Condition Census for this elusive die marriage. Only four examples were
known in 1961, and as such it was missing from both the Ryder-Boyd grouping (and Ryder's
reference work) and the Norweb Collection. Despite the doubled bow tip on the obverse,
which offers an easy naked-eye attribution point, a fairly small number has turned up
since then despite a groundswell in interest in this series. Taylor's specimen brought
$440 all the way back in 1987; this should bring more today.
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