1842

General Comments 1842 is one of the most common dates in the Liberty Seated Dollar series, with a mintage ranking of 38th out of 47. Examples are easy to locate in virtually any grade desired. They only become rare in choice to gem BU, MS63 or better. The finest known business strikes are three MS64+ coins graded by PCGS. The two major services have graded a total of 38 coins MS64, 19 at PCGS and 19 at NGC. 35 additional coins have been graded MS63. With no coins graded MS65 it’s safe to assume that several re-submissions are represented in these statistics. A total of 176 coins have been graded in all mint state grades (statistics as of February, 2017). In proof format this date is a significant rarity. The finest known proofs are three PR65 examples, one graded by PCGS, two by NGC. Eight additional coins have been graded in lower proof grades, three in PR63, three at lower levels. The lowest of these is PR61 (statistics are as of February, 2017).		Mintage 184,618 Proof mintage 25 estimated Mintage ranking 38th Finest known MS64 PR65 Known obverse dies 7 Known reverse dies 3 Known die marriages 8 Most common die marriage OC-2/ R1 Rarest business strike die marriage OC-6/ R6 Rarest proof strike die marriage OC-P1/ R6+

8 die pairs have been positively identified. 6 obverse dies were paired with 2 reverse dies to strike the seven business strike die pairs. One of the business strike die pairs is very scarce, another very rare. The other 5 can be easily located. None of these business strike dies were used for proofs.

A single proof die marriage was issued, using a unique obverse die paired with the reverse die used for almost all original proof issues from 1840 through 1854. We estimate a total proof population of around 15. The finest known examples are PR65, one PCGS, two NGC.

The 1842 emission sequence can be accurately determined since only two reverse dies were used for the 7 die marriages. We have considerable confidence in the first 4 marriages in the sequence. Reverse A, used for the first 3 die marriages, was polished several times, each time removing some of the unfinished areas that are present in its initial state. By observing the reduction in these areas we were able to accurately determine the order of the first 3 marriages. Reverse A was then retired and replaced with reverse B, without changing the obverse die, obverse 3. Obverse 3 exhibits notable degradation during its use. In its final state it exhibits light rim cuds below the date. These are seen only on die marriage OC-4, which places that marriage as the next in the sequence. The sequence following OC-4 is more difficult. Reverse B showed virtually no degradation during its use. The only change in state that we’ve observed is a small rim cud that appears as state b. We’ve seen that state on only a single coin, so we would feel more comfortable if we saw another example to confirm it. We’ve tentatively used it to place die marriage OC-7 at the end of the sequence, and taken our best guess at the placement of the other two marriages. Our current estimate of the emission sequence is noted in the following table.

With only a single proof die marriage the emission sequence is simple.

1842 coins are relatively easy to attribute. Only 2 reverse dies were used, and they can usually be easily identified even on low-grade coins. 6 obverse dies were used, but they have significant differences in date positions. The best approach to attribution is to first identify the reverse die, then choose from the obverse dies known to be paired with that reverse the one which best fits your coin. This approach should allow quick attribution of almost any coin down to a grade of VG.

Copyright © 2015, by Dick Osburn and Brian Cushing, All rights reserved.