Unearthing the Revolutionary Legacy: The Long Island Collection’s Connecticut Copper Pedigree

The Hidden Stories in Colonial Coinage

Hold history in your palm—early coins whisper tales of revolution in every dent and patina. Take this Connecticut Copper from the Long Island Collection, the rare FNDE variety lighting up forum discussions. More than oxidized copper, it’s a time capsule from America’s fiery adolescence, minted when our nation was more hopeful ideal than sovereign reality. Feel that rough edge? That’s the bite of rebellion against monarchical currency systems.

Historical Significance: Coins Forged in Freedom’s Fire

The 1780s weren’t just turbulent—they were revolutionary chaos distilled into economic reality. Picture this: thirteen victorious but bankrupt states, awash in worthless Continental paper (“not worth a Continental” wasn’t just slang—it was survival horror), bartering with Spanish silver while dreaming of financial independence. This was the pressure cooker that birthed America’s first numismatic legends.

Connecticut didn’t just dip its toe in currency experiments—it cannonballed into sovereignty. From 1785-1788, the state unleashed privately-minted coppers bearing defiant mottos and crowned shields. As forum user numis1652’s FNDE specimen demonstrates, these weren’t mere pocket change. They were miniature manifestos declaring “We can strike our own money!”—a radical concept that would define American numismatic value for centuries.

Political Theater Struck in Copper

Every Connecticut Copper screamed revolution through symbolism. The obverse portrait with AUCTORI CONNEC (“By Authority of Connecticut”) wasn’t just Latin—it was a middle finger to European monarchies. The reverse? A crowned shield shouting INDEPENDENCE like a mini-Declaration of Independence in your coin purse. This wasn’t currency—it was propaganda with exceptional eye appeal.

The Birth of Connecticut Coppers: Minting Under the Gun

The FNDE (Funeral Dirge Eternity) variety—Miller 3.2-C to specialists—emerged in 1786 from the hands of Abel Buell, America’s most fascinating scoundrel. This engraver-turned-counterfeiter-turned-mintmaster operated New Haven’s press with prison-hardened skill. His hand-cut dies gave each coin unique character—the fingerprint of a nation finding its footing.

• Metal Composition: 95-98% copper—pure American stubbornness in metallic form
• Diameter: 28-30mm of hand-hammered authenticity (consistency was for monarchs!)
• Mintage: 400,000-600,000 survivors—but only the fittest kept their original luster
• Die Varieties: Over 350 types—with FNDE among the rarest varieties whispering secrets

That mysterious “FNDE” legend? Some hear funeral hymns for fallen soldiers; others detect debates about perpetual union. This delicious ambiguity makes collectors lean closer, loupes trembling with anticipation.

Political Context: Pocket-Sized Rebellions

Connecticut Coppers arrived during America’s messy adolescence between Revolution and Constitution. Each coin was a miniature battlefield where state sovereignty clashed with federal ambition—a conflict settled only by the 1792 Coinage Act’s iron grip.

These coppers packed triple-threat political power:

1. Economic Bandage: Filling the small-change void with homegrown solutions
2. Sovereignty Billboard: Screaming state power through every transaction
3. Counterfeit Deterrent: Complex dies that said “Copy this, Redcoats!”

Their 1785-1788 production window captures lightning in a copper bottle—the exact moment when “these United States” became “The United States.” No wonder mint condition survivors command such reverence.

The Long Island Collection Pedigree: From Shadows to Spotlight

When forum members buzz about the Long Island Collection, they’re invoking numismatic royalty with a twist. Donald G. Partrick—the collection’s ghostly architect—operated through mentor John Ford Jr., the controversial dealer who later brokered Donald Miller’s legendary holdings.

‘Don’s mentor was John Ford Jr until Don’s acquisition of Donald Miller’s token collection thru Ford.’
– numis1652, forum participant

This provenance isn’t just paperwork—it’s a bloodline:

• Miller Connection: The Holy Grail of colonial collections, where ordinary coins become crown jewels
• Ford’s Shadow: Legal troubles can’t dim his eye for numismatic greatness
• Anonymous Passion: Partrick’s secrecy makes his coins whispering ghosts from elite cabinets

The FNDE copper in discussion likely slid through Ford’s fingers before Partrick’s velvet-lined trays—its surfaces preserving the oils of collecting titans.

Collectibility and Value Guide

Condition Tells All

The forum specimen makes collectors catch their breath:

• LIBERTY legend crisp enough to read without squinting
• Shield details standing proud like Minute Men
• Wear whispering “I circulated among revolutionaries”
• That even chocolate patina—untouched by chemical sins

Pedigree Pays Premium

Long Island provenance transforms copper into gold:

Rarity Realities

• FNDE variety: Perhaps 2,500 survivors—but how many with this strike quality?
• Pedigreed pieces: Fewer than 50 with documented elite provenance
• Original surfaces: Rarer than honest politicians in 1786

Conclusion: More Than Metal—America Forged in Copper

This Connecticut Copper doesn’t just collect dust—it collects meaning. From Buell’s anvil-strike to Partrick’s velvet trays, it’s survived British blockades, chemical dips, and careless pockets to tell its story. For collectors, it’s the Revolutionary War you can hold. For historians, it’s economic philosophy made tangible. For patriots, it’s proof that our monetary rebellion succeeded.

As forum sage lordmarcovan noted, pedigrees matter because they preserve a coin’s journey through time. When you examine this FNDE variety, you’re not just checking die cracks—you’re touching the ambition of a nation being born. That’s not numismatic value—that’s sacred American metal.

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