1886 1c Type 1 MS RD

Variety 1 and Variety 2 Identification: The change in the design this year was not noticed by collectors until 1954. The redesign by Charles Barber only slightly altered the shape of the portrait, and slightly lowered the relief. The reason for the change may have been the elimination of the extra outlines found on Longacre’s master die since the 1864 With L design was introduced. Extra outlines are found on many of Longacre’s designs. They are light shelves around the devices and letters. As a master die artifact, these were transferred to each hub that was made. The dies made from these hubs did not always have this detail. It depended on whether the dies were sunk deep enough to show it clearly.

Collectors often call the different styles Type I (or Type 1) and Type II (or Type 2). The use of the Roman numeral Extra Outlines rather than the Arabic numeral is more custom than convention. A seldom used, but more accurate, way to describe the difference would be Type of 1885 and Type of 1887. Some grading services and collector-album makers use Variety 1 and Variety 2, as does the Red Book. In my opinion this might confuse collectors, as the difference is considered to be not an individual die variety, but a minor design change. This book follows the Red Book convention.

The easiest way to determine the difference is the placement of the last feather in relation to the ICA in AMERICA. On a Variety 1 coin, the feather points between I and C. On a Variety 2 coin, the feather points between C and A. While these differences are well known, many collectors have trouble remembering which definition fits which design. I would recommend thinking of the feather as a clock hand, with the Variety 1 being an earlier “time” than the Variety 2. Comparison with earlier and later dates will also help.

1886, Variety 1, Cent Production: Overall this is a scarcer date in the context of the decade. The further division of this date between the two design styles raises their scarcity even more. The estimated division of the mintage is based on the survivor ratio rather than actual pieces produced.

Although coin production ceased in early 1885, die production did not. Records show 44 dies being made in 1885, and 45 dies in 1886. It is likely that about 75 undated Variety 1 dies were made in early 1885, with only 44 dated 1885. The remaining 30 or so undated dies would then have been dated and used when production started up again in late 1886. Then, to satisfy the demand from the coining department, the Mint made 15 or so more dies of the new design. Both designs could have been struck at the same time.

Survivability: These cents have survived as well as any other date of the 1880’s. There was no added collector demand for the date until many years after they were mostly all worn down. Any survivors exist strictly by chance.

Collecting Challenges: These are slightly scarcer than the 1885 issue. Most are well struck. Search for problem-free examples with good eye appeal. Extra effort should be placed in searching for the Variety 1. Typically, the higher value for the Variety 2 will bring more examples on the market than Variety 1 pieces.

Collecting Circulated Pieces: The optimal collecting grade for circulated coins is AU-50. Beware of cleaned and corroded coins. Choice chocolate-brown coins are very diffcult to find.

Collecting Mint State Pieces: The optimal collecting grade for Mint State coins is MS-64RB. These are only slightly scarcer than the 1885 issue. Survivors mainly come from the chance find, rather than old-time collector accumulations. Most are well struck with sharp dies. Full red gems are very diffcult to find. These are usually similarly priced to the 1885, but in practice are slightly scarcer.

Collecting Proof Issues: The estimated breakdown of the mintage figures between the two types is not known from Mint records. The estimate is based on observed survivors rather than actual production. As one of the highest-mintage dates overall, it would be expected that these would be widely available. This is true only in red-brown grades. Full red examples are rare, with cameo examples very diffcult. The planchets for some of this issue come a lighter tan-gold color.

Some minor repunched dates are known. None are of any substantial interest. Listings of the Snow variety numbers include the design type as part of the variety identification (1886, Variety 1, Snow-3, for example).