Professional Coin Grading Service announces its official redesignation of the popular early Federal-era copper coin

This specimen of the 1787 Fugio Cent, a variety known as United Above, States Below, is highly coveted among collectors and belongs to a popular series PCGS is reclassifying as a regular-issue coin. Courtesy of PCGS TrueView.

(Santa Ana, California – January 3, 2022) – The Fugio Cent has long been one of the most enjoyed early American collectibles, and now numismatists can count it as the earliest of all United States regular-issue coins.

Professional Coin Grading Service (www.PCGS.com) is announcing the groundbreaking reclassification after an exhaustive study carried out by a team of leading numismatic experts including John Dannreuther, Gordon Wrubel, Craig Sholley, Brian Greer, Chuck Link, Tony Terranova, Chris Victor-McCawley, David McCarthy, and Erik Goldstein.

“The Fugio Cent is one of the most popular coins from the early Federal period, so it’s a big deal when new research sheds enough light to completely reshape the hobby’s understanding of an iconic coin like this,” says President of Professional Coin Grading Service Stephanie Sabin. “By officially recognizing the Fugio Cent as a regular-issue circulating coin based on the overwhelming evidence presented by our numismatic experts, we help enhance the hobby’s understanding of this important coin and its foundational role in the early United States monetary system.”

PCGS Director of Numismatic Education and Grading Team Leader Steve Feltner is intrigued at how much information lay beneath the surface of such widely studied and collected coins like the Fugio Cent. “Fugio Cents, long lumped into the same colonial class as New Jersey Coppers, Nova Constellatio Coppers, and Massachusetts Cents, are finally going to get the numismatic credit that they have deserved for nearly two and a half centuries!”

Feltner says the decision to reclassify the status of the Fugio Cent wasn’t something to be taken lightly. “When I was first approached about the idea of reclassifying Fugio coppers as Fugio Cents, I will admit I was skeptical. So much has been studied and written about them in the past that I couldn’t imagine anything warranting a change.” He concludes, “I was wrong.”

Adds Feltner, “The research and historical backing that was presented to me and my colleagues at PCGS was irrefutable. There were several times during the initial read-through that I caught myself saying, ‘that makes sense.’ It was an experience that I will never forget.”

Among the evidence warranting the reclassification of the Fugio Cent as a regular-issue coin is a measure passed by the Board of Treasury on April 21, 1787, noting that the Fugio Cents were to be “of the federal standard” per weight standards stipulated in the 1786 report for United States gold, silver, and copper coins. As part of these standards, cents were to contain 157.5 grains of pure copper. So, when Congress authorized the contract for Fugio Cents on this date, the intent was to produce coins that were needed in commerce.

An extract from the Journals of the Continental Congress for April 21, 1787. Public domain image.

The reclassification of the Fugio Cent as a regular-issue coin isn’t the first time PCGS has led the way in properly recognizing coins that may have been numismatically miscategorized in the past. Years ago, PCGS was the first grading service to classify 1792 Half Dismes, once listed among pattern coins, as regular issues. A Guide Book of United States Coins (“The Red Book”) and others soon followed suit.

The reclassification of the Fugio Cent means PCGS will list them among regular-issue coinage, under the heading of “Federal Contract Coinage,” and they will retain their position among PCGS Colonial Registry Sets. Read the January/February issue of the PCGS Rare Coin Market Report for the full story on why PCGS is reclassifying the Fugio Cent as a regular-issue coin. For more information about the PCGS Set Registry, please visit https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry.

About Professional Coin Grading Service

Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) is a third-party coin and banknote grading company that was launched in 1986. Over 35 years, PCGS has examined and certified more than 48 million U.S. and world coins, medals, and tokens with a combined value of over $47 billion. For more information about PCGS products and services, including how to submit your coins for authentication and grading, please visit www.PCGS.com or call PCGS Customer Service at (800) 447-8848.

(Beaumont, Texas) December 29, 2021 – Although the price of gold fluctuated during 2021, the public’s demand for gold bullion coins such as the popular American Eagle series soared during the past year, according to Michael Fuljenz, president of Universal Coin & Bullion (www.UniversalCoin.com) in Beaumont, Texas. Known as America’s Gold Expert®, Fuljenz is the 2021 American Numismatic Association Dealer of the Year.

“For the first 11 months of the year, the United States Mint sold over 1.2 million ounces of Gold American Eagles, up 51 percent from the 794,500 ounces sold in the same period in 2020. This is on track for the best year since 1999. We’ve had significantly increased interest in gold as well as silver bullion coins from current, former, and many new customers,” explained Fuljenz.

“With rising federal spending and deficits, plus rising inflation and global uncertainty, I predict that gold prices will return to over $2,000 in the year 2022, and silver could go to $27 per ounce. The market for high-quality U.S. rare coins was extraordinary during 2021 and it can rise even more,” he added.

“The recent volatility in the Dow and Russell 2000 indexes are a reminder that gold is the only proven stable form of money for over 3,000 years,” he stated.

Fuljenz, who has taught counterfeit detection classes for the American Numismatic Association, warns potential buyers of bullion and rare coins to be wary of the many fraudulent advertisements appearing on social media sites.

“Some of these platforms repeatedly accept ads for counterfeit coins which are typically made in China. If you see an ad offering gold or silver bullion items at below their actual precious metal content’s value, ask yourself why would someone offer you an item for far less than they could receive selling it to a reputable dealer? Be cautious,” emphasized Fuljenz who received an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from McNeese State University in 2015.

Universal Coin & Bullion President Michael Fuljenz has won dozens of prestigious national and regional awards and honors for his consumer education and protection work in rare coins and precious metals. A respected community leader in his hometown of Beaumont, Texas, Mike also has served with distinction as a consultant to the Federal Trade Commission, Attorney General of Texas, United States Mint, and Royal Canadian Mint. He is on the Boards of Directors of the influential National Coin & Bullion Association, Crime Stoppers of Southeast Texas, and is a member of the Professional Numismatists Guild’s Accredited Precious Metals Dealer program.

For additional information, visit Universal Coin & Bullion online at www.UniversalCoin.com, call 800-822-4653, or contact by email at info@UniversalCoin.com.

A vintage Chinese coin just sold for $2.16 million, setting a world record for an NGC-certified Chinese coin. The ultra-rarity was featured in Heritage Auctions’ Hong Kong World Coins Signature Auction, held December 11–13, where a second NGC-certified Chinese coin also realized over $1 million.

The China (1928) Pattern Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 62 that realized $2.16 million more than quadrupled its pre-auction estimate of $300,000 to $500,000. It also set a record for any Chinese coin offered in a Heritage Auctions sale.

A pattern is a coin with a proposed design, and this one shows Zhang Zuolin, also known as the “Mukden Tiger.” A warlord of Manchuria, he gained the presidency in June 1927 and ruled for just under a year before he was driven from power and assassinated.

The other coin to realize seven figures in this auction was a China (1911) Long Whiskered Dragon Silver Dollar graded NGC PF 63. It realized $1.2 million, well above its pre-auction estimate of $500,000 to $700,000.

The results were the 14th and 15th time in 2021 that an NGC-certified coin realized over $1 million.

“When given a rare opportunity to buy an ultra-rarity such as this one, bidders want to be assured that the coin is genuine and accurately graded,” said Ben Wengel, NGC Senior Grading Finalizer of World Coins. “The marketplace has clearly embraced vintage Chinese coins that are certified by NGC, which are backed by the industry-leading NGC Guarantee of authenticity and grade.”

Read more at ngccoin.com.