USA ½ dollar Seated Liberty Half Dollar 1878
USA, San Francisco
Rarity
Extremely Rare
Attributes of Coins
| Region | USA |
|---|---|
| Denomination | ½ dollar |
| Krause number | KM# A99 |
| Mintage | 12,000 |
| Metal | Silver 0.900 |
| thickness | 2 mm |
| diameter | 30.6 mm |
| weight | 12.5 g |
Obverse:
Liberty
Star
Creators:
Christian Gobrecht
LIBERTY
Reverse:
Coat of arms
Creators:
Christian Gobrecht
HALF DOL.
IN GOD WE TRUST
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Introduction of Coins
The extremely low mintage of this final San Francisco Mint Seated Liberty Half Dollar resulted in a genuinely rare coin across all grades. Indeed, it is the key to completing a basic date/mint set of this coin type, and a mere 60 survivors are estimated to exist. A disproportionately high number (16 or so, according to series expert Bill Bugert) have survived unworn, though only a very few of these are gems (MS-65 or higher). The typical MS 1878-S half dollar was fully struck from fresh dies that imparted some degree of prooflike brilliance. The low mintage of this issue resulted from the great redundancy of fractional silver coins in circulation and in government vaults by early 1878. No more pieces were needed, and further production through 1891 was limited to the Philadelphia Mint. This came as a conveniently timed relief, since passage of the Bland-Allison Act early in 1878 mandated the production of many millions of unwanted silver dollars annually. Many numismatic writers have concluded that the latter development is what led to the near suspension of half dollar coinage after 1878, but it was simply a coincidence. Only a single pair of dies is known for 1878-S, and all examples have 147 reeds, a gauge not used for 1878(P) or CC halves. This has made it possible to easily spot a common Philly half dollar to which an S mintmark has been added. In addition, there are several distinctive die markers for this rare coin, and these are well illustrated in Bill Bugert's excellent reference, A Register of Liberty Seated Half Dollar Varieties, Volume I, San Francisco Branch Mint.Read More
