United States 1863 cent
Although the Flying Eagle cent seemed to be popular, officials at the Mint were not satisfied. It seems that higher points of the eagle were directly opposite of the wreath on the reverse causing striking problems such as weekly stuck coins. As early as 1857, changes were discussed as Mint Director Snowden proposed that Christopher Columbus should appear on the cent. Since no real person had ever been on a circulating US coin, it was believed that the idea of Columbus would not be approved. In 1858, pattern coins with a smaller eagle were designed by Assistant Engraver Anthony Paquet, but the result was not satisfactory. Sometime during the same year, James B Longacre, who was the Chief Engraver at the Mint, designed a new obverse which depicted an Indian. The reverse was a laurel (olive) wreath rather than the agriculture type wreath. These designs answered the problem of striking coins with design elements opposing each other.
The face of the design came from the 1854 $3 and gold dollar, with the feather headdress changed. The idea of using an Indian headdress to symbolize "Liberty" was Longacre's and he explained it in a letter: To us it is more appropriate than the Phrygian cap; the emblem rather of the emancipated slave, than of independent freemen. of those who are able to say "we are never in bondage to any man". I regard the [the Indian headdress] then then emblem of America, as a proper and well defined portion of our national inheritance; and having now the opportunity of consecrating it as a memorial to Liberty, our Liberty, American Liberty; why not use it? The reverse, which in 1859 was a laurel wreath, was changed to an oak wreath with a shield at top. Intentionally or not, it better expressed Northern feeling toward maintaining the union, and remained on the reverse until 1909.
Recorded Mintage: 49,840,000 including about 460 proofs. This mintage would not be exceeded until 1890.
Specification: 72 grains (4.67 grams), 88% copper, 12% nickel, 19 mm diameter, plain edge. James B Longacre, Chief Engraver at the Mint, designed the new obverse which was adapted from his design on the 1854 $3 gold dollar and Indian Head (Type 3) gold dollar.
- Breen, Walter H., Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of U. S. and Colonial Coins, New York: Doubleday, 1987.
- Snow, Richard E., Flying Eagle and Indian Cents, Tucson, AZ: Eagle Eye Rare Coins, 1992.
- Snow, Richard E., The Flying Eagle and Indian Cent Attribution Guide, 2nd. edition. 1859-1869, Tucson, AZ: Eagle Eye Rare Coins, 2003.
- Snow, Richard E., A Guide Book of Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents, Atlanta, GA: Whitman Publishing, 2007.
- Yeoman, R. S., and Kenneth Bressett (ed.), A Guide Book of United States Coins, 65th Ed., Atlanta, GA: Whitman Publishing, 2011.
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