1787 VT 1/2P Bust Right Half Penny

Coin Details

Description

Cataloged as RR-15 and Whitman 2265, this 1787 Vermont copper half penny features an unusual right-facing bust on the obverse — the opposite orientation from the standard left-facing bust found on the majority of Vermont copper issues. The obverse legend reads AUCTORITATE VERMONTENSIUM ("By the Authority of the People of Vermont"), asserting the state's sovereign right to issue coinage under the July 1785 legislative act that granted minting privileges to Reuben Harmon Jr., who established his coinage operation at Rupert in Bennington County. The reverse displays the standard seated Liberty figure with a liberty cap on a pole, surrounded by the legend INDE ET LIB (Independence and Liberty) and the date. Vermont coppers represent one of the more compact and collectible state coinage series, produced from 1785 through 1788 under Harmon's contract, with dies cut by several engravers whose individual styles are evident across the varying portrait types. The RR catalog numbers (Ryder-Revised) provide the standard die variety attribution for Vermont coppers. Struck in copper, the coin weighs approximately 8 grams with a 28 mm diameter and plain edge. Classified as moderately scarce, the bust right orientation is notably less common than the bust left type for Vermont coppers. The right-facing bust represents a different die sinker's interpretation or a deliberate design variation, and the contrasting orientation makes this variety immediately distinguishable from the more prevalent left-facing issues when sorting through groups of Vermont coppers.

Rarity Notes

Moderately scarce. Bust right orientation is less common for Vermont coppers.

Cross References

RR-15; Whitman 2265