1799/8 Silver Dollar - 1799/8 $1 PCGS VF35. 13 Stars, B-1, BB-142. This attractive, lightly toned 1799/8 Draped Bust silver dollar is a mixture of tan, lilac, gun-metal gray, and sliver. The presence of these colors attests to the coins originality. The surfaces are clean for the grade with no particularly distracting individual abrasion marks. There are prominent die cracks at the I in AMERICA and above the T in STATES. There are several other die breaks and clash marks as well, which add interest to the piece.

The BB-142 is identified by the last 9 punched over the previous 8. It is the only overdate die for the year. The last 9 is almost touching the bust, and the stars are close together. The letters of LIBERTY are widely spaced, and there are die flaws under ERTY. This obverse was combined with three reverse dies. The reverse of the BB-142 has 13 stars above the eagle. A leaf points to the center of the I in AMERICA. Star 12 touches the eagles lower beak. The ray of that star points to the left outside of the U in PLURIBUS. The U is usually weakly struck. The far right of the A in STATES is above the junction between Clouds 3 and 4. The first A in AMERICA touches Feathers 3 and 4. The die is cracked and scaled between the R and I in AMERICA and above the right of the T in STATES. There is also a prominent die crack from the S in STATES to the top of the O in OF. The reverse die was only used for the BB-142 variety.

Robert Scot designed the Draped Bust dollar. He was born in 1744 in Edinburgh, Scotland or England. (Documentary evidence is lacking as to where he was born.)  He was trained as a watchmaker in England and learned engraving afterwards. He moved to the United States in 1777, where he worked as an engraver of plates, bills of exchange, and office scales. During the Revolution, he was an engraver of paper money. In 1780 he was made the State Engraver of Virginia. He moved to Philadelphia the next year. He was appointed Chief Engraver of the United States Mint on November 23, 1793 by David Rittenhouse, Mint Director. Scots ability to make dies was limited, and in his advanced years he had failing eyesight. His work was somewhat less than that done in Europe at the time, and Scot was criticized for its poor quality. He was responsible for designs of most of Americas first coins.

The Draped Bust dollar, designed by Robert Scot, was based on a drawing of Ann Bingham by the famous artist, Gilbert Stuart. Evidently John Eckstein, the engraver, translated the drawing poorly, which might explain why Stuarts family refused to acknowledge his role in the coinage design. On the reverse, Scot mixed up the arrows and olive branch creating a very martial heraldry, maybe for political reasons. The United States was engaged with France in an undeclared naval war. Perhaps this symbolism was being used to make a statement to France and others about the sovereignty of the United States.

In its population report, PCGS shows 2 1799/8 BB-142 dollars in VF35 condition.