1857 Flying Eagle Cent PCGS MS64

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Offered for auction is a very nice example of the short-lived Flying Eagle cent series. Dated 1857 and graded MS64 by PCGS, the coin displays significant warm coppery luster. Unlike many examples of the 1857 Flying Eagle cent, the obverse of this coin is sharply struck. The revers displays the common weak strike of the wreath leaves in the upper right.Designed by James B. Longacre, more famous perhaps for his Indian Head Cent design, a modified version of Christian Gobrecht's Flying Eagle was used for the obverse and the wreath design from the 1854 $3 Gold piece was used for the reverse. The Mint had been wanting to replace the Large Cent for many years because, with the cost of copper so high, it was more expensive to mint them than they were worth. Large cents had also become unpopular with the spending public and merchants due to its size. With the proliferation of Hard Times Tokens during the late 1830s and 1840s, Americans were not surprised by the introduction of the new, small sized cent.After wrangling for years over a suitable alloy for use in the new small cent, a combination of 88% copper and 12% nickle was settled upon. Because of the nickel content, these coins became the first to be called "nickels" or, sometimes, "nicks".*During the first year of the series, 1856, the Mint recorded a production of only 654 Flying Eagle read more

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