Featured Indian Cent: 1877 Indian Cent – Altered or Genuine
Excerpt from Longacre’s Ledger August, 2025.
A Discussion of the 1877 Indian Cent – A Key Date Collectible Coin
I rarely get an upgrade to my number one or even my number 2 set of Indian Cents these days but at a recent show I picked up a couple gorgeous common date issues, 1898 and 1903. And while they are common dates I will buy anything of eye-appeal. While I was putting them away I had a look at my 1877 Indian Cents, and noticed the one in my number 1 set I had listed as a Proof-64. But I just have never been comfortable with the attribution. It just never had that Proof surface appearance. The one in my #2 set was mint state, or near mint state with some old obverse damage, But is undoubtedly a business strike.
So I pulled them for high end photography and characterization, and the following is a nice summary of 1877 Indian Cents Business Strikes vs. Proof Issues and how to tell real coins from altered date counterfeits.
The reverse design of the Indian cent was redesigned in 1870. All Indian cents made prior to 1870 had a Shallow N. From 1870 to 1872 most have the new Bold N reverse, but there were a few leftover Shallow N dies used these years. All Indian cents from 1873 onward have the Bold N reverse, except for one year – 1877. All 1877 cents struck for circulation were struck with a single Shallow N reverse die. The Proofs, however, were struck from leftover Bold N dies. Altered date counterfeits are typically made from more common dates which have the Bold N, usually 1879. The useful rule-of-thumb way to detect the typical counterfeit 1877 is if it has a Bold N, it is either altered or a Proof.
The number one distinguishing factor between proof issues and business strikes can be determined by studying the reverse of the coin. All business strikes were made from a reverse die with shallow N’s. The shallow “N” in “ONE” slopes downward from the upper left to the lower right, almost becoming one with the field. Conversely, the “N” in “CENT” slopes upward from the upper left to the lower right. The Proof reverse die has a Bold “N” and all areas of the “N’s” are well above the relief of the die.
Another characteristic of this reverse die is the center crossbar of the “E.” It appears more as a sideways “T” vs. the Proof issue, which has the look of a trumpet.
Finally, the stanchions of the “N” are smaller on the Proof die than the business strike die.
Moving to the obverse, the differences are more subtle. One commentary on the obverse is the feather detail on business strikes is weaker than proof issues. This is indeed true, most notably on the feathertips of 1 through 3. To find a really sharply struck 1877 Indian Cent business strike with full feathertips is a true rarity and is deserving of a sharp premium.
Most Proof issues emanate from Snow-PR3. In my estimation almost two-thirds of all proofs are PR3. Moving on to the business strikes, the majority were struck employing Snow-2 dies. Again, my estimate based on researching high grade sales is that approximately 80% of known business strikes are Snow-2.
The date position between the PR3 and business strike S2 are almost identical, and initially made me wonder if perhaps the proof die was used for business issues, but this is not the case.
I took some nice higher magnification images of my proof and business strike issues to highlight the differences. As mentioned, the easiest diagnostic is the reverse die. Note the shallow sloping “N’s” on the reverse as compared to the Bold “N’s” on the Proof issue. Staying on the reverse closely look at the middle serif of the E’s noting the difference between the trumpet “E’s” on the Proof and the sideways-looking “T’s” on the business strike. Most counterfeit 1877s have Bold “N” reverses.
The obverse differences are much more subtle and require a good loupe of at least 7x power. Both the PR3 and S2 obverse dies were affected by localized corrosion resulting in very small pits. But since corrosion is often very random they are not in the same location.
If you look at the junction of Miss Liberty’s hair curl below her ear, follow it down to the junction with the ribbon, and then look to the left about one-third the way over to the front of Miss Liberty’s neck, you will find a diagnostic die-corrosion pit as shown in the photo.
I would add from a collector’s point-of-view, some late state PR3 issues do not look very “proof-like,” and look more like a very well struck business issue. In fact, on rare occasions, PR3 examples have ended up in Mint State holders, even at the major grading services. Indeed I purchased my PR3 raw and many advanced collectors I showed it to thought it was in fact a business strike. The surfaces don’t look much different than the business strikes in my album. So a later state 1877 PR3 actually offers the collector the opportunity to own a very sharply struck obverse that looks like a business issuance.
On Snow-2 business strikes, a die-corrosion pit of nearly similar size also exists on Miss Liberty’s neck, but the location is different. On the obverse business strike die, the die-pit almost touches Miss Liberty’s hair curl just above the junction with her ribbon, as shown in the photo.
These minute obverse diagnostics are critical when verifying authenticity on 1877 issues, probably the most commonly counterfeited dates in the series.
In summary, use these diagnostics on ANY raw 1877 Indian cent you are considering for purchase to ensure authenticity. Be sure to employ a high-quality loupe of 10x or 14x power. Many Snow PR3 issues were not made with mirror fields and offer an opportunity to pick up an extremely well-struck key date that looks like a business strike. 1877 Indian Cents are always in demand and offer the collector a nice investment in addition to their collecting interests.
Bibliography
The Flying Eagle and Indian Cent Attribution Guide, 3rd Edition. By Richard Snow. Eagle Eye Rare Coins, 2014. Electronic version, 2025. www.indiancent.com
The Guide Book to Flying Eagle and Indian Cents , 3rd Edition. By Richard Snow. Whitman Publishing. 2016.
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