1801-03 Draped bust
A date set of 1801-1803 Draped Bust cents is an amazing trio. Howard Newcomb published an entire book cataloging just 1801-1803 varieties. You have dozens of Sheldon varieties to choose from, but you only need one per date. If these are your first coins in the series and you’re prepared to spend thousands of dollars per coin, I think you should at least get a variety you can discern with the naked eye. Here are my recommendations for your draped bust trifecta.
1801 Three Errors Reverse (s-218 and s-219). This is one of the most interesting coins in the entire draped bust series. First, the wreath stem on the left side is missing entirely. Second, the “U” in United States was originally punched upside down and then corrected which results in it looking like the roman numeral II. Finally, the fraction has three zeroes in the denominator instead of 100, or “1/000”. It’s also the most expensive on this list. There are 114 graded coins in PCGS. 3 in mint state, 4 in AU, and 4 in XF. VF25 seems like the sweet spot with a population of 6 and 18 finer for around $4-5,000. To get into XF could eclipse $10k but would be a special coin that’s very rare in high grade and I feel undervalued.
1802 1/000 (s-228). For 1802 you have to choose between the 1/000 fraction error and the stemless wreath. I prefer the fraction error between the two because it’s the more obvious to the casual observer. You don’t need to show them what a normal wreath looks like to get it. It would be different if it were just one missing stem like on the 3 errors reverse. It’s a rarer coin than the 3 errors with only 73 graded at PCGS but 17 in AU or MS so not as rare in higher grade. AU50 is possible for $5-6,000. XF is as little as $2-3,000.
1803 100/000 (s-249). There are plenty of quirky coins in 1803 draped bust cents, but I’m going to stick with the theme and recommend the 100/000 which is very similar to the 1/000 except the attempt was made to correct the error by punching a 1 over the first 0. This is another undervalued coin with only 28 graded at PCGS but possible to get in AU50 with a population of 2 and 8 finer for $5,000.
A 3-coin date set aligned with the 1925 Newcomb 1801-1803 book with some easily recognizable varieties is very do-able with a budget of $10,000 if you want to be in the VF for the 3 popular 3 errors and XF for the 1802 and 1803, or around $20,000 for the XF 3 errors and AU 1802 and 1803.