1868 Proof Two Cent Pattern - J-614

Coin Details

Auction Record

$13,800 GEM PR 03-16-2004 Stack's

Description

A second proof two-cent pattern for 1868, featuring die characteristics or composition distinct from J-613. The two-cent denomination would survive only four more years before its abolition in the Coinage Act of 1873, making these 1868 patterns among the final experimental studies for a denomination whose historical significance far exceeded its commercial utility. As the first American coin to bear IN GOD WE TRUST, the two-cent piece had blazed a trail that transformed the entire national coinage, and its patterns document the continuation of that legacy even as the denomination itself faded from everyday use.

Rarity Notes

R.6 to R.7. Estimated 10-15 examples extant.

Cross References

Pollock-3650