J-1725 1884 Five Cents Pattern - J1725 1884 5C Pattern NGC PF64 CAMEO CAC, R7. This rare, proof 1884 Five Cent Pattern coin has a hexagonal center perforation. It comes with the provenance of the Exemplar Collection. The coin is well struck with full details on the devices, as expected for a proof coin. The surfaces are original and clean, except for a slight bit of oxidation around the opening. A few hairlines are visible, but most require magnification; none is particularly intrusive. The design elements are frosty and contrast with the darker fields. The coins grade of PF64 Cameo is confirmed by the CAC sticker. It indicates that the piece is of premium quality and fully merits the assigned grade.

The coin designed by Eastman Johnson is a five-cent pattern struck in aluminum with an octagon-shaped hole in the center. The obverse shows the inscription UNITED STATES OF AMERICA encircling thirteen six-pointed stars with the date below. The reverse has Union shields left and right. The denomination is written with FIVE at the top and CENTS at the bottom.

This pattern was designed by the American painter Eastman Johnson. It was sketched in the late 1870s. Johnson was born in Lowell, Maine in 1824. In 1849 he moved to Europe and studied art in Germany, Holland, and France. He is best known for realistic paintings of scenes of ordinary people and everyday life. However, he did paint portraits of prominent Americans such as Lincoln, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Emerson, and Longfellow. In 1859 Johnson opened a studio in New York and became famous as the result of an exhibition featuring his painting Negro Life at the South also known as Old Kentucky Home. Johnson was a Co-founder of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. His name is inscribed on its entrance. He died in New York City in 1906.

Johnson designed patterns for the one cent and five cent coins. They are known as holey designs because all feature a hole in the center. The coins were made on perforated planchets. When struck, the metal was often squeezed inward creating irregular holes. This difficulty along with problems of planchet preparation, made this effort unproductive.

The 1884 J-1725 five cent pattern has a rarity rating of R7, which means that only 7 to 12 piece are known in all grades. In its population report, NGC shows 1 in PFCA64 with 3 better. At PCGS there are 0 in PFCA64 with 1 better. CAC as of November 2012 has only the present coin listed.