1866 Indian Head Cent Repunched Date FS-303 Snow-9

Description

This repunched date variety on the 1866 Indian Head cent is cataloged as FS-303 in the Fivaz-Stanton Cherrypickers' Guide and as Snow-9 in Rick Snow's attribution system, two of the most widely referenced guides for Indian Head cent varieties. The Indian Head cent, designed by James Barton Longacre and produced from 1859 through 1909, was struck in a bronze composition of 95% copper and 5% tin and zinc beginning in 1864, weighing 3.11 grams with a 19 mm diameter and a plain edge. Philadelphia struck 9,826,500 Indian Head cents in 1866, a notably lower mintage than the wartime production highs of the mid-1860s, placing this date among the more affordable semi-key issues in the series. Minted during Reconstruction, when the nation was healing from civil war and debating the role of silver and gold in the monetary system, this coin carries both numismatic and historical significance. A repunched date occurs when one or more digits of the date are punched into the working die more than once in slightly different positions, and on FS-303 both sixes in the date show clear evidence of secondary impressions above the primary digits. Prior to 1908, dates were individually hand-punched into each working die using individual digit punches, making positional variations and repunched dates an inherent part of the manufacturing process. The visibility of the repunching above both sixes provides collectors with a straightforward diagnostic that can be confirmed even at moderate magnification. The combination of Cherrypickers and Snow catalog numbers ensures this variety is recognized across the two primary attribution frameworks used by Indian Head cent specialists, and its inclusion as FS-303 signals that the variety was deemed significant enough for the mainstream Cherrypickers audience.

Attribution History

• FS-303, Snow-9