(1837) Copper Token HT-44A, Full Brockage Obverse Liberty - Not One Cent

Coin Details

Auction Record

$720 AU Details 08-20-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

This exceptional variety is a full brockage of HT-44, featuring a mirror-image impression of the obverse design incused into the reverse. A brockage occurs when a previously struck token remains stuck in one die, causing the next blank to receive a normal impression on one side and an incused mirror image of the same design on the other side. This is a striking error of considerable numismatic interest. Full brockage Hard Times Tokens are rare manufacturing accidents that provide direct evidence of the production process. When a struck token adhered to the upper (hammer) die, the next planchet fed into the press received the normal lower die impression on one side and the relief-reversed impression from the stuck token on the other. The result is a mirror-image obverse where the Liberty head and inscriptions appear sunken into the surface rather than raised in relief. The inclusion of HT-44A in the Rulau catalog as a distinct variety rather than merely an error coin reflects the systematic approach that Hard Times Token researchers take to documenting all known forms of each design. Brockage errors, off-center strikes, and double strikes are cataloged alongside intentional varieties because they contribute to the understanding of production methods and mint practices at the private facilities that produced these tokens.

Rarity Notes

Very rare. Full brockage tokens are manufacturing anomalies produced in very small numbers. Few examples survive.

Cross References

Rulau HT-44A