1863 Indian Head Cent Base

About This Coin

The 1863 Indian Head Cent Base is a United States cent from the Indian Head Cents 1859-1909 series — an early issue, 5th of 51 years in the series. In 1863, coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint with a combined mintage of 49.8 million. This ranks 34th of 51 years by total mintage, above the series median of 39.0 million. The obverse features Liberty wearing a feathered headdress, often misidentified as a Native American — actually represents Liberty adorned with a chief's war bonnet and the reverse displays an oak wreath with a shield at the top, enclosing ONE CENT. Produced during the Civil War, when coin hoarding caused severe shortages and the Mint experimented with new compositions to keep coins in circulation. Struck in 88% copper, 12% nickel, weighing 4.7 grams, 19 mm in diameter, with a plain edge. Collectors have cataloged 51 known die varieties for this date across 6 categories, including atypical die clash, cud, die break and 3 other types. Across its variants, estimated values range from $15 to $1.2K depending on mint mark, grade, and strike type. A notable auction result reached $24K in MS67 grade at Heritage Auctions. Designed by James Barton Longacre.