Owner Comments:
The attribution process is made easy with respect to this coin, for the as-made raised bar that appears on the BB-27 near the uppermost curl of hair is in plain view. The die state, however, is a bit more tricky to determine for the following reasons. We have before us either die state 2 or die state 3, both perhaps the most common for the die marriage, and these states are differentiated by an as-made die crack that extends from the left-hand wreath. On the former die state, it is only a partial unfurling, on the latter it extends all the way to the rim, but our example has a small tick in this very spot rendering full assurance impossible. Nevertheless, this die marriage comprises approximately 2,500 to 3,500 of the extant examples from the original delivery for the issue (per Bowers, 1993), a number the Guide Book places at 160,295 pieces. It is smooth-looking, even in this lightly circulated numeric grade, with a few delicate ticks scattered about both sides. There is a tender, ruddy coloration visible at indirect light angles on this otherwise dove-gray piece, and the seeming lack of detail at the central devices on either side is due mostly to a soft strike. All but mute on the subject of luster, for it has largely disappeared, a result of its light use in commercial channels.