 1877 5¢. Choice Brilliant Proof, with claims to Gem. This specimen shows an extraordinary strike and remarkably sharp rims. Fields are generously reflective and the devices are fully crisp. The date shows a filled upper loop in '8' and there is a hair-thin struck-through line on the reverse. Here is another Proof-only date with 510 struck. The late Walter Breen's commentary on Proofs of this date proves that this example is vastly superior to the great majority of surviving examples in quality of strike as well as in its exquisite preservation.
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