Featuring a beautiful original patina with bright luster peaking through, this 1870 10 Sen is a gorgeous example made even more alluring by the rare Deep Scales designation.
Being the first year of issue, the Osaka mint had difficulties striking the 5, 10, and 20 Sen issues from this year, particularly noticeable in the obverse dragon. Towards the end of the production run they improved their striking and dies, creating a "Deep Scales" variety. This variety is much more scare than its "Shallow Scales" counterpart - between both PCGS and NGC fewer than 30% of examples graded are of the "Deep Scales" variety.
