The Philadelphia Mint delivered two 1861-dated obverse dies to the San Francisco Mint in November 1860, followed by a third in June of the following year. Mated with leftover reverse dies, these obverses produced a mere 18,000 1861-S Half Eagles. Since this was a workhorse issue, like most S-mint gold coins from this era, it should come as no surprise that the typically offered grade among survivors is only VF or XF.