Owner Comments:
On 6/1/1786, the New Jersey legislature granted coining privileges to a group of three enterprising individuals - Walter Mould, Albion Cox, and Thomas Goadsby, (with the unofficial involvement of Matthias Ogden). They were to produce 3 million copper coins, each composed of 150 grains of pure copper, over a period of two years. The State supreme court justices, or any one of them, were to determine the design elements and legends to be incorporated into the coins. A 10% royalty was to be paid quarterly to the State, and all coins were to be produced within the State.
The relationship between some of the mint venturers was contentious from the outset, and ultimately resulted in litigation, and the evolution of multiple mint sites: Rahway, Morristown, and Elizabethtown; with connections to out-of-state sites, such as New York City (John Bailey) and Machin Mills.
Elements of the coppers' design were taken from the State's seal, attributed to Pierre du Simitiere. Although as many as 144 varieties exist, many very unique, most exhibit common obverse and reverse motifs: The obverse displays a truncated horse's head, in varying styles, usually facing right, with a plow below, and the peripheral inscription "Nova Caesarea". This Latinized name for New Jersey was first used in a boundary establishing indenture issued by Charles II. Caesarea was an ancient classical name for the Isle of Jersey located in the English Channel, and called Caesar's Island in Roman times.
The common reverse features a shield in its center, (based on the Great Seal of the US), with the peripheral legend - "E Pluribus Unum" - the first use on a coin of what would ultimately become our national motto.
Many New Jersey coppers were struck over Connecticut coppers, Irish halfpence; counterfeit English halfpence, and others that could be obtained more cheaply than creating planchets from scratch.
The 1881 scholarly treatise of Dr. Edward Maris, "A Historic Sketch of the Coins of New Jersey With a Plate", serves as a foundation for the alphanumeric designations still used today.
Pictured above, is a 1788 New Jersey Head Left copper, graded VF 20 BN by NGC. It has been designated Maris 50-f. This piece was formerly part of the Eric P. Newman Collection.
Only three New Jersey copper varieties feature a horse facing left: the Maris 50-f; Maris 49-f; and Maris 51-g. The 50-f is the most common of the three, while the 51-g is very rare. High grade specimens are elusive.
The Maris f reverse is a "biennial die", meaning it is coupled with obverse dies of a different year. Thus the date shown on the obverse of a New Jersey copper is not necessarily indicative of the year when it was struck. From die state analyses, for example, it has been determined that the 49-f and 50-f 1788 coins were struck before the 48-f and 37-f of 1787. This has resulted in an interesting anomaly - some 1787 f specimens exhibit a heavy die break across the shield, that is completely absent from 1788 pieces.
Other distinguishing features of the Maris 50-f include: a re-punched 88 in the date; enhanced plow details not seen on other varieties, such as a ring on the end of the plow beam, and a double crossbar connecting the plow's handles; and, as evidenced in the pictured coin, an ultimate substantial loss of detail in the shield, attributable to a failing reverse die.