1783 Nova Constellatio 1000 Units (Mark)

Coin Details

Description

Listed in the Crosby pattern catalog and as Whitman 1770, this 1783 Nova Constellatio silver pattern for 1000 units — designated a "Mark" — is the largest denomination in Gouverneur Morris's proposed decimal coinage system and one of the most important numismatic rarities in all of American coinage. The Mark was conceived as the primary large silver coin in the proposed monetary framework, analogous to the dollar denomination that would ultimately be adopted under Thomas Jefferson's refined version of the decimal system codified in the Coinage Act of 1792. Morris, the prominent Founding Father who served as Assistant Superintendent of Finance under Robert Morris (no relation), presented this decimal monetary proposal to Congress as a rational alternative to the chaotic mix of British, Spanish, and French currency then circulating in the states. The obverse features the eye of providence surrounded by thirteen stars and radiant rays, with the legend NOVA CONSTELLATIO ("New Constellation"), while the reverse displays the denomination and date. The 1000-unit value established the Mark at the apex of the proposed denomination hierarchy, above the 500-unit Quint and 100-unit Bit. Unique or nearly so, with only a handful of examples known across all denominations, the Nova Constellatio Mark ranks among the most important early American patterns because it preserves the physical evidence of the intellectual framework that shaped the nation's monetary founding — a tangible artifact of the debate from which the American dollar-and-cent system ultimately emerged.

Rarity Notes

Unique or nearly so. Among the most important early American patterns.

Cross References

Crosby pattern; Whitman 1770