 1856 Choice Brilliant Proof. A rare early Brilliant Proof issue that has excellent surfaces and eye appeal. The color is the desired light silver-gray, with specks of golden toning near the rims, particularly on the reverse. The strike is full and complete, with bold curls on Liberty's head and hand. Each star is bold. Identifiable by a tiny planchet flake or nick on the right obverse field close to Liberty but between stars eleven and twelve. Faint hairlines account for the grade. The diagnostics noted in Breen's Proof Encyclopedia include the date high, point of shield left of the serif of '1', and the '5' in the date weak. Also noted in Breen, the '6' seems to show repunching of some sort, or was simply badly engraved in the die. A decidedly scarce coin, far more difficult to obtain than any Proof date issued a few years later. NGC PF63.
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