Catalog
1/2 Penny - Nova Constellatio "Blunt Rays, CONSTELATIO"
| Issuer | United States (pre-federal and private territorial) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1783 |
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| Currency | Pound |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Within a circular olive wreath tied at the base, the bold block initials U·S occupy the central field, symbolizing the nascent United States. The peripheral legend LIBERTAS · JUSTITIA arcs around the upper portion of the coin, while the date ·1783· appears at the base below the wreath, flanked by pellets. A small decorative floral or rosette ornament crowns the apex of the wreath at twelve o'clock. The entire design is contained within a beaded border, reflecting the neoclassical republican iconography prevalent in early American coinage. The piece is believed to have been struck circa 1785–86 despite bearing the 1783 date. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
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| Mintage | 1783 |
| Additional information |
The Nova Constellatio coppers of 1783 were produced by a Birmingham manufacturer — almost certainly Matthew Boulton's operation or a close competitor — under contract tied to proposals by Gouverneur Morris and Robert Morris for a new American decimal coinage system. Congress never formally authorized them, and the pieces circulated in something of a legal grey zone, filling a desperate shortage of small change in the post-Revolutionary economy.
This specific die marriage, distinguished by blunt rays and the misspelling CONSTELATIO, points to a second or variant working die produced during the same general run. The missing second L is consistent across multiple known examples, suggesting it was cut in error and never corrected rather than being a late-state deterioration.