Owner Comments:
1884 5C ‘Holey’ Pattern
Judd-1725, Pollock-1935
Rarity: Low R.7, PR66Cam PCGS
Struck in Aluminum with plain edge
The Eastman Johnson "holey five cent" design.
Obverse:
The Obverse shows UNITED STATES OF AMERICA at the outer rim, with an inner circle of 13 stars and date 1884 below.
Reverse:
The reverse shows FIVE above and CENTS below a roughly octagonal opening (probably handcut on the distortion and metal flow at the edges) in the planchet, with shields on either side.
Comments:
The Teichman roster lists nine specimens, one being a possible duplicate. An unusually bright, non-hairlined example with little of the normally seen oxidation on the surface. A planchet flaw has left a slightly rough finish bordering the octagonal perforation below the star under TA in STATES, serving as a pedigree marker.
21.4 grains per Stacks 10/2003
Provenance/ Appearance:
Heritage Nov 2025 Signature® Auction / Lot #3460 Priors
- Ex: Dr. Walter Lee Crouch Selection (Superior, 6/1977), lot 277;
- The Metropolitan New York Sale (NERCA, 4/1980), lot 393;
- Randolph S. Rothchild Collection (Stacks, 10/2003), lot 1046.