By Jack Riley
This 1868 2 Cent piece surfaced on a Facebook group and raised eyebrows. The coin didn’t appear as a genuine struck coin and sparked a conversation on the piece, as wont to happen on the platform, with comments proclaiming “fake” and others “get it graded” and so on.
This was the conversation piece:
Before we get into specifics here, some basics. Two cent coins were produced between the years 1864 to 1873. The denomination was introduced during the Civil War to address a coin shortage and filled the gap left by other denominations being hoarded. The 1964 two-cent coin was the first to use the motto, “In God We Trust.”
Back to the issue at hand. In my internet browsing I found yet another 1868 2 Cent piece that is a pretty clear cast counterfeit. Both share a common reverse which I would call the “Notched O.” Also, there is a small lump above “cents,” highlighted in red. It is worth mentioning the leaves are disconnected but not highlighted.
What could add to this “Family” you may ask? A fantasy date 1879! The Notched O is still represented however the small lump is gone. Green arrow points to the disconnected leaf referenced earlier. This example sports a small field lump below “OF” awell.
The addition of the 1879 shows that this can and will be “mix matched” with any date. It would be of no surprise if this already exists on every date of the 2 Cent series!
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