1827 50C O-124a MS(PCGS#39723)

August 2023 Mail Bid Auction 56

Auctioneer

Sheridan Downey

Lot Number

67

Grade

VF30

Price

935

Lot Description

The `27-124 is one of those dastardly difficult die marriages.   Attribution is a problem.  Note the drawn stars and absence of dentils.  The worn obverse die was first used on the 1827 O.135.  A short, horizontal curl under theIin LIBERTYis the key for cherry pickers.  Veterans call it the “ED Curl,” honoring Elton Dosier, who was the first to equate Overton’s obverse 17 [O.124] with obverse 22 [O.135].  This unassuming 1827 displays original grey toning, lighter on the devices.  The surfaces are problem-free save for a nick between TAof STATES.  The PCGS holder carries an obsolete attribution, “O.124a.”  The BHNC properly delisted the subvariety in 2020.  The notion of a distinct die state arose in 1990 when Don Parsley was preparing the 3rd revision of Overton’s tome.  I won’t go into the details here.   Estimate: $1,000 to $1,500