1786 VT 1/2P Bust Left Half Penny

Coin Details

Description

Cataloged as RR-9 and Whitman 2230, this 1786 Vermont copper halfpenny represents a significant design transition in the authorized coinage of the Vermont Republic. The 1785 Vermont coppers had featured a landscape obverse depicting a plow, sun, and mountains — imagery drawn from Vermont's agrarian character. The shift to a mature portrait bust facing left in 1786, accompanied by the Latin legend AUCTORITATE VERMONTENSIUM ("By the Authority of the People of Vermont"), aligned Vermont's coinage with the portrait-style format used on Connecticut coppers, reflecting a standardization trend among the state coinages of the Confederation period. The reverse depicts a seated Liberty figure holding an olive branch and liberty pole with the legend INDE ET LIB (abbreviated from INDEPENDENTIA ET LIBERTAS, "Independence and Liberty"). Vermont authorized Reuben Harmon Jr. of Rupert to produce copper coins beginning in 1785, granting him a monopoly in exchange for a percentage of the coinage. The bust-left orientation became the standard obverse type for 1786 Vermont coppers, and while moderately scarce in absolute terms, this represents the most available configuration for collectors seeking a representative Vermont portrait-type copper from this pivotal year when the independent republic's coinage adopted a more sophisticated numismatic presentation.

Rarity Notes

Moderately scarce. The standard bust type for 1786 Vermont coppers.

Cross References

RR-9; Whitman 2230