1825 N-5 R7+ G4. Glossy medium chocolate brown and steel. The surfaces are smooth and display only a few trivial contact marks. The notable ones are a thin nick on the rim over ES in STATES and a tiny, very light but fresh pin scratch above the second A in AMERICA. Very nice for the grade. This die variety was first listed as the "A-5" die variety in the 1883 reference written by Frank D. Andrews, An Arrangement of United States Copper Cents, 1816-1857. Howard R. Newcomb, in his 1944 reference United States Copper Cents 1816-1857, built on the work of Andrews but listed the A-5 variety (N-5 in the Newcomb reference) as "unknown." John D. Wright advanced the study of this series in his 1992 reference The Cent Book. In his chapter on the cents of 1825 he stated "There is no Number 5" as none had surfaced in spite of Andrews' 1883 listing and over 100 years of searching. Then, in 2011 an example was discovered on eBay by Tom Deck of Alabama. A careful examination of Tom's cent by John D. Wright and your cataloger confirmed Tom's coin was indeed the "missing" Andrews/Newcomb #5 die variety. It is a product of the N-4 obverse die in a later die state and the reverse of the N-10 die variety in an earlier die state. Since Tom's discovery and subsequent announcement by Paul Gilkes in the 23 January 2012 edition of "Coin World" there have been three additional examples confirmed for the A-5/N-5 die variety. The finest of the group is a VF20 that is net graded as F12 due to minor surface roughness and a couple rim bruises, and it is followed by three pieces that are graded G4 (EAC grades). Your cataloger has examined all 4 pieces, and the example being offered here is the best of the 3 being graded G4. The surface quality of this piece is equivalent to the Deck coin, but this example has a bit more detail. The third of the G4 pieces has a comparable amount of wear but it also has a fine scratch across the head and the obverse was lightly cleaned. The other 3 pieces were placed privately; this is the first public offering for the "new" variety. This discovery was featured in a front-page story by Paul Gilkes in the June 17, 2013 issue of "Coin World." Clearly this piece is the new "key" to a complete series of 1816-1839 cents by die variety. Estimated Value $10,000-UP
Ex Scott Nelson.
Liberty Cents
