 1799 B.12. Normal Date, No Berries. Brilliant Uncirculated, with claims to Choice. Here is a beautiful coin that retains most of the original lustre and eye appeal. The color ranges from bright silver to a delicate golden blush near the rims. Boldly executed by the dies, with sharp obverse stars and curls. On the reverse, the stars are clear, but a couple show minor softness, but the eagle's breast and wing feathers are all clear. An early die state with the obverse just starting to crack below the date. A strong magnifier will discover a delicate pattern of frost imparted to the obverse die by the engraver, a feature believed to be unique to this variety, certainly so to the degree observed here. As a result of this frosting process, a microscopic pattern of interlocking pieces are seen in the protected recesses of Liberty's curls and drapery, and to a lesser degree on the stars. The surfaces are wonderfully clean, lacking any hints of rim problems or adjustment marks, and no distracting marks are present.
For identification, a small hidden nick is found on the long down slope of the middle curl behind Libety's head, which protrudes into the field below the ribbon. On the reverse a short nick crosses the shield border at the upper left into the eagle's wing. A highly appealing coin that is certainly one of the finer examples known of this die pairing behind the Boys Town (Superior, May 1990) example. The left side of the obverse has a flat area on the rim, where the edge of the die has started to break away; on later die states this appears to be a rim bump, but most coins struck from this obverse die show this die chip to varying degrees.
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