USA ½ dollar Seated Liberty Half Dollar 1879
USA, Philadelphia
Rarity
Extremely Rare
Attributes of Coins
| Region | USA |
|---|---|
| Denomination | ½ dollar |
| Krause number | KM# A99 |
| Mintage | 4,800 |
| 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
From 1879 through 1890 there was no demand for additional half dollars, since Treasury vaults were filled with issues from earlier years. The Philadelphia Mint continued to make small numbers annually to provide souvenirs for mint tourists, coin collectors and those seeking to give the coins as gifts on special occasions. It was also deemed advisable to produce just enough pieces to prevent speculation in what otherwise would have been proof-only dates. Despite its small mintage, the circulating edition of the 1879 half dollar is not rare. The coins were viewed as keepsakes from the outset, and those few worn pieces that exist were likely spent in later years by persons not aware of their status. These worn pieces are eagerly sought by date/mint collectors who cannot afford to collect MS coins for the entire series yet want to have matching sets of lesser coins. A highly disproportionate number of 1879 halves remain in Mint State, many of them prooflike or semi-prooflike gems. With such a low mintage, the dies retained a fairly fresh appearance throughout the press run. Wiley and Bugert identified two marriages from equal numbers of obverse and reverse dies. A single collar was employed, this having 153 reeds.Read More
