USA ½ dollar Seated Liberty Half Dollar 1858
USA, Philadelphia
Rarity
Common
Attributes of Coins
| Region | USA |
|---|---|
| Denomination | ½ dollar |
| Krause number | KM# A68 |
| Mintage | 4,226,000 |
| Metal | Silver 0.900 |
| diameter | 30.6 mm |
| weight | 12.44 g |
Obverse:
Liberty
Star
Creators:
Christian Gobrecht
LIBERTY
Reverse:
Coat of arms
Creators:
Christian Gobrecht
HALF DOL.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Introduction of Coins
The year 1858 witnessed a surge in the production of fractional silver coins across all denominations. This may be explained in part by Mint Director Snowden's policy of paying out silver coins in exchange for deposits of silver bullion. The law stated that they were to be exchanged only for gold coins to avoid a redundancy, but this is exactly what happened. The fractional silver, with its limited legal tender status, became a nuisance to merchants. Often refused by banks when presented in large numbers, the holders of these coins had to sell them at a discount to brokers and simply absorb the loss. The huge production figures for 1858 brought this problem to the forefront. Snowden was reminded of the law in no uncertain terms, and mintages dropped the following year. An extremely common coin across all grades short of Mint State, the 1858(P) half dollar graces many a collector's type set. Wiley and Bugert have cataloged an amazing 42 die marriages, and these were the product of 39 obverse dies and 37 reverses. Two different hubs were employed in the creation of the reverse dies. The first is that seen on 1842-57 halves. The overall relief is high, and letter L in HALF has a short base. The second debuted this year and continued until 1866. It is in noticeably lower relief, and the L in HALF has a longer base. The latter is scarce but not truly rare. Two reed counts are known, these being either 145 or 146, respectively. This issue is extremely rich in both RPD and MPD varieties---too many, in fact, to list here. Please refer to the VarietyPlus website for more detailed information. Also found there is a pleasing DDO variety (VP-001, WB-102).Read More
