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Tell me about the history of the proof sets


Nightwing

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I know the hobby of coin collecting is old, but I do not know when the hobby became big enough that proof sets were first created? Does anyone know when the first proof sets came into existence? If it's in modern day times do we know which government produced them? Also, does anyone know when the US Mint produced its first proof set?

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They were also used for commemoration - such as pattern pieces for a new design to show congress (1856 Flying Eagle cents) - or a tribute to an ally or political friend - such as King Farouk's legendary set of proofs.

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The first Proof coin was produced in the UK by the Royal Mint in 1652. The first US Proofs were produced in 1834. The first US Proofs produced for public sale was in 1858, they were produced continuously through 1915. They started making US Proofs again in 1936, stopped in 1942 and began again in 1950. They continue today.

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I have three main ways to procrastinate when I need to be at the computer: CoinPeople, ESPN.com, and Heritage Auctions.

 

All that time spent browsing Heritage has shown me a lot of need goodies and I've learned LOADS by reading catalog descriptions. I've seen proofs before 1834, so this was a fun little search I did.

 

I've come across some early American cents from 1774 that are considered proof specimens of the issue.

 

For federal issues, it seems that 1819 is the magic date. 1819/8 Large Cent proof

Even then, sometimes the proofs are disputable. But during the mid 1820's, the mint seems to have produced some undisputable proofs based on their quality, their die preparations, and their miniscule numbers.

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