1847 Braided Hair Coronet Head Cent - Braided Hair Large Cent Newcomb-7 Obverse Rim Cud

Description

Attributed as Newcomb-7 (N-7), this 1847 Braided Hair large cent carries an obverse rim cud between the 6 o'clock and 7 o'clock positions where part of the obverse die's rim gutter was lost, leaving a raised interruption in the design rim, following its curve, on Liberty's side of the coin. Christian Gobrecht's Braided Hair design places Liberty's elaborately braided portrait within a ring of thirteen stars, and a cud in the lower-left quadrant potentially lies beside one or more of the lower stars or the hair detail near the base of Liberty's portrait. Philadelphia struck approximately 6.18 million large cents in 1847, a substantial increase over recent years that reflected continued demand for the copper cent despite growing calls for a smaller denomination — a transition that would eventually come with the introduction of the Flying Eagle cent in 1857. The Newcomb attribution system assigns N-7 to a specific obverse-reverse die pair, meaning this cud developed on the obverse die of die marriage number 7 for the 1847 date. Rim cuds represent terminal die failure — once part of the rim gutter is lost, the die is functionally compromised and would typically be removed from service, though some cuds grew progressively larger when dies remained in use after the initial break. Collectors should examine the lower-left rim area of the obverse for the characteristic raised interruption in the design rim.

Cross References

• Newcomb N-7