Indian Head Cent 1870 G-VG

The year 1870 was a progressive year for the United States. The 15th Amendment was passed guaranteeing citizens the right to vote regardless of race, color, or condition of servitude. This, however, did not include women, women’s rights would not come for another half century. This amendment did help pave the way for African Americans to gain seats in the US Congress. Even the seat of the former Confederate president Jefferson Davis was filled by an African American senator. It was also a big year for the United States Mint as the first gold and silver coins would be minted at the new Carson City Mint!

Mintage figures for the Indian Head cent continued to decline as nickel mintages continued to increase. Only just over 5,000,000 cents were minted in 1870. There was, however, a new development with the Indian Head cent. The reverse design had a slight change. The words “One Cent” would be bolder. This naturally created varieties in the coin as there would be a Shallow N (or called a reverse type of 1869), a Bold/Shallow N (an in between type), and a Bold N (type of 1870). Many collectors aim to find all three types for their collections. Unfortunately, as in other years, many of this year’s issue of Indian Head cents would be melted by the Mint in the 1870’s making this yet another difficult year to collect.

The proof issues for this year can actually be found with both the Bold N and the Shallow N, however, the mirror for this year was particularly shallow making cameo coins increasingly difficult to find. Because the reverse was changed this year, many varieties are known. Most varieties are double die reverse. The most popular variety is called the “pickaxe”. The die was damaged by the last feather in Liberty’s cap and resembles a pickaxe. It is a fairly common and fun variety to collect!

• Denomination: Cent
• Year: 1870
• Diameter: 19mm
• Mint Mark: N/A
• Thickness: 1.5mm
• Grade: Ungraded