1864 1C J-356a, BN PR(PCGS#60525)

June 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

4333

Grade

PR65BN

Price

4,392

Lot Description

The design is the same that the Mint used for regular issue 1864 Indian cents of the No L type. Struck from nearly coin alignment of the dies on a planchet similar in thickness to those used for regular issue copper-nickel Indian cents of the era. Iridescent cobalt blue enlivens dominant color in rich tobacco and saddle-brown on both sides of this fully struck, semi-reflective specimen. According to Rick Snow (2014), these pieces were produced at the request of Treasury Secretary William P. Fessenden and scientists at the National Academy of Science as part of tests with various alloys of aluminum and copper. The author further states that these alloys were not necessarily being proposed for regular issue cent coinage, the use of the Indian dies being purely a matter of convenience for the Mint. The <em>uspatterns.com</em> website states that at least a dozen specimens of Judd-356a are known, and this is one of the more carefully preserved specimens that we have offered in recent years.