I won this 1838 Half Dime on ebay for a fairly decent price. It is an example of the circulated, but decent condition coins that I acquire for my 7070 Dansco. This second year of minting had something about it that looked different to me from my other SL Half Dimes. The dealer I bought it from did not identify it as such, but I believe it is the small star variety - a one year type? Even the reverse seems slightly different than my Half Dimes from later years. If it is the small star variety I got an even better deal. Opinions please?
It's tough to tell from such small pics, but I did some wandering at Heritage to find examples of both. The coin you won certainly seems to be a small-stars type. Are you a member at Heritage? It's free, and gives you access to their huge auction archive.
If not, when you receive the coin, sign up and have a look. They have gem examples of both types in their archive, with pics of such size as to make the attribution easy for you.
Why didn't I think of Heritage. I looked Dave and it is definitely the small star variety. That makes it a better variety and makes me very happy. I think the dealer missed this one, and the bidders as well.
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