1873 closed 3 indian head penny vs open 3??

[funkman]

Hello all,

I recently dug up an 1873 Indian Head penny and I went to PCGS site and they mention for that year that there was an "open 3" and a "closed 3" version. Can anyone tell me what the differences are? I checked out a couple on Ebay and I do not see what they mean by open or closed. I'm sure I have the "open 3" version but just want to make sure. If anyone finds any closeup picks or can explain the difference, I would appreciate it.

Thanks,

Funkman

 

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[Don in SJ]

The distance between the left side of the 3 end points is greater on an open 3 versus the closed three. Redbook has a very good photograph showing the difference. It appears that the lower portion of the left side of the open 3 is more stretched out, kind of hard to explain....

Don

 

[oldplacesnofinds]

It is really hard to tell. Best thing to do is let a coin person look at it.