New York Copper Coins

About This Coin

Encompassing a diverse and complex array of copper pieces associated with post-Revolutionary New York, this category includes some of the most artistically accomplished and historically important state coppers of the Confederation period. Struck in copper, weighing approximately 8 grams with a 28 mm diameter and plain edge, New York Copper Coins encompass several distinct series: the Excelsior coppers (featuring the state motto and various obverse designs including a heraldic eagle and an Indian figure), the Nova Eborac ("New York" in Latin) pieces, the "Non Vi Virtute Vici" (Not by Force but by Virtue I Conquered) tokens, and various other privately produced coppers that circulated in the state during the 1780s. Unlike Connecticut and Vermont, New York never officially authorized a state copper coinage, making the legal status of these pieces ambiguous — they represent private enterprise, speculative ventures, and possible counterfeiting operations rather than state-sanctioned monetary production. The variety of designs, legends, and die combinations makes New York coppers one of the most challenging and rewarding specialties in early American numismatics. Within the Post-1776 States Coinage (1776-1788) series, New York Copper Coins offer collectors an extraordinarily rich field for die variety study and historical investigation into the tangled web of private minting that flourished in the absence of unified national monetary policy.