Owner Comments:
This coin was first presented to me as a 1-Ca variety prior to the January 8, 2015 Partrick auction, when it sold as Lot 5840. It was referred to as a "Unique Plain Edge Pewter Variant." In Walter Breen's "Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins," this coin is plated on p.111, #1090, and referred to as unique. The Heritage auction catalogue argued that it should be given a specific Whitman number. At the time, I was not sure about this argument plus, I had just acquired two 1-Cs, MS 65 and MS 62, and I did not feel it was necessary that it be added to complete the collection.
Subsequently, I rethought my original position. I do still view it as a sub-variety; however, both Joel Orosz and Mark Borckardt made persuasive arguments to me as to why this particular coin was very important. In an email on 8/17/15, Mark stated that, "In all early series, they (sub-varieties) are every bit as important as the primary example, and in some cases, the sub-varieties are more important." He then cited several examples to demonstrated the strength of his argument. "All of the examples mentioned above are rated from R.1 to R.7. As a result, they are more visible and attainable to a large number of collectors. Your 1-Ca Continental dollar is unique for the sub-variety. Given the rather small number of collectors who seek to complete a variety set of Continental dollars (and you are the first one ever to reach that goal, to the best of my knowledge), the 1-Ca sub-variety is not recognized by the broad, general numismatic world. However, it is my opinion that it is an extremely important component of the complete variety set. In fact, without that single piece, I would hesitate to call the collection complete."
When I shared Mark's email to me with Joel Orosz, he said, "I have the utmost respect for Mark's depth of knowledge, and I gotta say that his argument makes enormous good sense to me."
Without Mark's and Joel's sound guidance and advice, I might have missed this important coin. It has received very little mention over the years and thus, I believe it is important that it get a bit more attention. The wide flange and plain edge make it an interesting addition to the collection. I hope that you find it of interest as well.