1880-CC Reverse of 1878

The 1880-CC Reverse of 1878 is a Carson City variety struck from leftover Reverse of 1878 hubs that had been retired at Philadelphia and Carson City for new dies but remained in working-die inventory at the Western mint. The variety belongs to the same 591,000-piece 1880-CC mintage and shares the year's standard obverse die-prep configuration; only the reverse differs. The older Reverse of 1878 hub shows flat parallel eagle breast feathers and slightly different feather geometry than the rounded concave-feathered Reverse of 1879 that became the series standard. The variety is catalogued by Van Allen-Mallis as a Top 100 Morgan VAM.

Authentication of a Reverse of 1878 on an 1880-CC turns on the eagle's breast under five to ten power magnification. The Reverse of 1878 shows flat parallel feather detail across the breast; the Reverse of 1879 shows a more rounded breast with concave feather lines. The tail feather count remains seven on both hubs (the eight-feather variant was a 1878-only design). The combination with the 8/7 overdate is catalogued separately as 1880-CC 8/7 Reverse of 1878. PCGS, the Professional Coin Grading Service, and NGC both attribute the standalone Reverse of 1878 in their slabs.

The 1880-CC Reverse of 1878 is a popular series Variety pickup and trades at a meaningful multiple of the standard 1880-CC across Mint State grades. The variety pairs naturally with the 1879-S Reverse of 1878 in collections that target the early-Morgan hub-transition documents. Most certified examples grade MS62 to MS64; MS65 and above is condition-scarce. Certified slabs from PCGS or NGC with the VAM attribution noted on the holder are the standard purchase route at any meaningful price level, since variety counterfeits and misattributions both circulate in the raw market. The Van Allen-Mallis attribution system catalogues every documented Morgan die marriage, and the Top 100 Morgan VAM register identifies the most-collected varieties for specialist collectors. For the Carson City die-prep history and the broader 1878-1879 hub-modification context, see the Morgan Dollar series history.