1839 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent Base

About This Coin

The 1839 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent Base is a United States cent from the Braided Hair Coronet Head Cents 1839-1857 series — the first year of the series. In 1839, coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint with a combined mintage of 200,000. This represents the lowest annual mintage in the entire series, below the series median of 5.2 million. The obverse features Liberty facing left with braided hair swept up and held by a beaded cord, wearing a headband inscribed LIBERTY and the reverse displays a wreath enclosing ONE CENT. First year of the Braided Hair design. The 1839/6 overdate (Head of 1838) and Silly Head/Booby Head subtypes are notable varieties. Struck in copper, weighing 10.89 grams, 27.5 mm in diameter, with a plain edge. Across its variants, estimated values range from $50 to $2.2K depending on mint mark, grade, and strike type. A notable auction result reached $13K in MS66BN grade at Stack's Bowers. Designed by Christian Gobrecht.