1854 Braided Hair Large Cent, Raw

Looks VF to me, I don't know varieties so I will leave that to someone else.

for $14....a steal!

No worse than F15, and possibly VF20. I don't think it's an N-12 because the 1 isn't touching the bust.

I don't like attributing the late dates because there are something like 29 Newcomb varieties for this date, and then you add in die states.. spent 30m with both Newcomb and Grellman. No luck.

Not having the coin in hand doesn't help. I'll give it a shot again when it shows up. It's a "no round ear hole" which narrows it down to only 7 or 8 dies, and it's a close 54 with 1 nearly touching bust and tops of 5 evenly close to curl. I had ruled out N-25 due to not seeing the die chip below the hair curl btw. the 13th star and 4, and because N-25 MDS and LDS plates seem to show more separation between 13th star and hair, but there is a note that says the chip may disappear on later die states, so that may be the situation.

I think its between 15 and 20 but I can see it at 20. Nice pickup for that price

Took some pictures after getting it in the mail today.

(24MP -- shows both the good and the bad.)

The coin is actually about a shade or two darker than the 2nd set of pictures and evenly colored. Confirmed Newcomb 25, the wedge is there, but faint (Grellman Stage B.)

With fluorescent direct lighting:





Oblique incandescent (much truer to the real color)