1854 Proof Cent Pattern - J-158

Coin Details

Auction Record

$5,750 PR64 05-27-2003 Superior Galleries

Description

Judd-158, Pollock-185, rated High R.6. This pattern shares the same unusual obverse as the J-157 — an 1854 Seated Liberty dollar die reduced by a circular lathe to small cent size, producing characteristically blurred devices and visible lathe marks. The reverse features 1 CENT within the oak and acorn wreath. Where the J-158 differs from its predecessor is in composition: it is struck in a simpler two-metal alloy of 40% nickel and 60% copper, without the zinc component present in the J-157's German silver formulation. The edge is reeded. This copper-nickel ratio would prove prescient, as the Mint ultimately settled on a copper-nickel alloy (albeit with different proportions) for the Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents that followed. Despite being rated slightly less rare than the J-157, the J-158 remains an extremely scarce pattern, with a dozen or so specimens traced across the numismatic record.