1798 Small Eagle, 15 Stars

The 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars Draped Bust Dollar carries 15 obverse stars commemorating the 15 states in the Union before Tennessee admission was formally tracked on the dollar obverse, struck early in 1798 alongside the 1798 Small Eagle 13 Stars variety. The 15-star arrangement reflects ongoing Mint variation in star-count conventions during the 1797-1798 transition period before settling on the 13-star standard. The 1798 combined annual mintage was 327,536 pieces across all Small Eagle and Heraldic Eagle varieties, and the 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars is among the rarer 1798 Small Eagle die marriages.

Strike quality on the 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars varies across the small production, with central definition on Liberty and the eagle often soft on the limited die work. Most surviving examples grade VG to VF from heavy circulation in the late 1790s and early 1800s, with PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC populations clustering at F and VF. Mint State examples are genuinely rare at all levels. Die marriages are catalogued by the Bowers-Borckardt (BB) attribution system, with the 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars representing specific die marriages distinct from the 13 Stars variety.

The 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars is a Semi-Key issue and one of the rarer 1798 Small Eagle Draped Bust Dollars. Pricing trades at meaningful premiums above the more common 1798 Heraldic Eagle varieties at every grade, reflecting both the 15-star context and the small surviving population. The 1798 Small Eagle 15 Stars pairs with the 1798 Small Eagle 13 Stars as the matched Small Eagle transition pair before the mid-year Heraldic Eagle introduction. Authentication concerns center on cleaning, polishing, edge damage, and counterfeit detection; certified slabs from PCGS or NGC with BB die-marriage attribution noted on the holder are essential at any meaningful price level. For the star-count transition history and the broader 1798 production context, see the Draped Bust Dollar series history.