Circulation Strike:

Although the two obverse hub varieties of the 1858 Flying Eagle cent are most easily distinguished by the size of the letters in the legend, in reality the design of the Small Letters has been reworked in its entirety. In addition to spacing between the letters AM in AMERICA, this variety is distinguished from its Large Letters predecessor by shallower relief to the eagle with flatter feathers and the tail raised only minimally above the surrounding field area. Most circulation strikes of this variety are paired with the Type II Low Leaves Reverse hub, as here, which is identifiable by bold relief to the denomination ONE CENT and a nearly closed letter E in ONE. Of course, all hub varieties and combinations of the 1858 Flying Eagle cent are rare in the finest Mint State grades.

Proof Strike:

Probably only 100 to 150 Proof 1858 Small Letters Flying Eagle Cents exist, and the median grade for these is Proof-64. The 1858 Small Letters in Proof format is much rarer than the 1856 Flying Eagle, and exceeds the availability of the 1857 and 1858 Large Letters only by a slim margin. Despite the tiny Proof mintage, die varieties exist which are detailed by Rick Snow in his books on the series.

View 1858 Small Letters Flying Eagle Cent Auction Results

The example to the left was sold by Stack's Bowers Galleries in August 2021 Sale, where it realized $28,800.