1840 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent Base

About This Coin

The 1840 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent Base is a United States cent from the Braided Hair Coronet Head Cents 1839-1857 series — the second year of the series. In 1840, coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint with a combined mintage of 7.4 million. This ranks 15th of 19 years by total mintage, above 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. Large Date and Small Date varieties exist. The Petite Head subtype appeared. Struck in copper, weighing 10.89 grams, 27.5 mm in diameter, with a plain edge. Collectors have cataloged 6 known die varieties for this date across 2 categories, including bisecting rim to rim die crack, cud. Struck one year after the 1839 key date, the lowest-mintage regular issue in the series. Across its variants, estimated values range from $30 to $3.1K depending on mint mark, grade, and strike type. A notable auction result reached $18K in PR65 grade at Heritage Auctions. Designed by Christian Gobrecht.