1802/1 $5 Capped Bust MS63 PCGS
Park Avenue Numismatics Inventory Item # PAN9067
1802/1 $5 Capped Bust MS63 PCGS
This type is also labeled Draped Bust or Turban Head to distinguish it from the later Capped Bust type introduced in 1807 (the Guide Book calls this type Capped Bust to Right, and the later type Capped Bust to Left). The eagle on Robert Scot’s earlier Capped Bust Small Eagle design of 1795 was unpopular, criticized as being scrawny. Scot replaced the small eagle with a larger eagle, often called a Heraldic design because of the dominant presentation of the Union shield over the eagle’s body.
Some have noted that steel coinage dies used at the time were nearly as valuable as bullion, and for that reason it was common to use and reuse those dies until they wore out. Such economy resulted in many varieties of early half eagles, including the chronologically “impossible” pairing of the Heraldic eagle reverse with an obverse 1795 date, explained by the use of an older 1795 obverse die in 1798.
Similarly, 1801-dated dies were prepared but not used in 1801, modified the next year to produce the 1802/1 overdate, and 1803 coins are 1803/2 overdates. The Large Eagle dies were first made early in 1798, but earlier-dated dies were retrieved from storage to meet increased demand for half eagles that year. This resulted in the production of Large Eagle reverse examples dated 1795, 1797, and 1798, the years also associated with the Small Eagle reverse.
This variety has the low overdate obverse with an extensively cracked reverse. Eight different varieties are known for the 1802 half eagle coinage, and all are 1802 over 1 overdates; however, these are from two distinctly different obverse dies.
The first obverse die, seen here, has the final digit about centered between the bust and the border. The other obverse die has the top of the digit 2 touching the drapery. This is a pleasing example with lightly reflective fields and attractive greenish-gold coloration.
