1798 Draped Bust Cent - First Hair Style - Draped Bust Large Cent (First Hair Style) Reverse Cud

Description

This 1798 Draped Bust Large Cent of the First Hair Style variety carries a reverse cud where a section of the die rim near "STATES" broke away, leaving a raised featureless area on the struck coin. The First Hair Style designation refers to Liberty's hair as first engraved on Robert Scot's Draped Bust design, without the extra curl added on the later Second Hair Style. Cuds form when a piece of the die rim fractures and separates completely, and the resulting cavity fills with metal during striking to produce a distinctive raised mass devoid of design detail. The available images document various stages of the cud's life, showing the progression of the die break from early to advanced states on a coin struck on the hand-operated screw presses of the early Philadelphia Mint. Large cents of this era were substantial coins weighing approximately 10.89 grams at 29mm diameter, and the Draped Bust design was in its third year of production when this 1798 specimen was struck. A section of the reverse die along the rim just outside of "STATES" broke away, leaving a raised, featureless area on the struck coin.