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Copper 'Mailed Bust Facing Left'
| Issuer | State of Connecticut |
|---|---|
| Year | 1786-1788 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | A seated female figure, representing Liberty, occupies the central field facing left, depicted in flowing classical drapery and holding a liberty staff or scepter in her right hand. A shield rests at her side, and she is seated upon a low platform or exergual line above the date. The date appears in the lower portion of the field beneath the seated figure. The encircling Latin legend INDE: ET LIB: (abbreviating Independentia et Libertas — Independence and Liberty) runs around the periphery. The overall design closely follows the general type established for the Connecticut copper series, engraved in a robust if irregular colonial style. |
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| Additional information |
Connecticut was one of the few post-Revolutionary states to actually operate its own mint, authorizing copper coinage in October 1785 after Congress failed to establish a federal mint quickly enough for practical commerce. The contract changed hands multiple times — Abel Buell, James Jarvis, and others held minting rights at various points — and the resulting inconsistency in planchet quality and die workmanship is evident across the type. More than 30 die varieties are documented for the mailed bust issues alone.
Counterfeiting was rampant. Connecticut coppers were widely imitated by private coiners in both New England and Britain, and distinguishing genuine state-authorized strikes from contemporaneous counterfeits remains a legitimate attribution challenge on worn examples.