USA ½ dollar Seated Liberty Half Dollar 1871
USA, Carson City
Rarity
Scarce
Attributes of Coins
| Region | USA |
|---|---|
| Denomination | ½ dollar |
| Krause number | KM# 99 |
| Mintage | 153,950 |
| 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 combination of a low mintage and zero interest in branch mint issues by collectors of the time resulted in a coin that is very scarce to rare across all grades. Mint State examples are extremely rare, with perhaps just a few coins extant. These are sometimes seen with a brilliant, prooflike obverse, and it has been speculated that these may have been intended as presentation pieces. The Carson City Mint requested and received four obverse dies dated 1871 and just two new reverses. It's evident that some reverse dies shipped for 1869-70 production remained on hand at the beginning of 1871. A remarkable seven die marriages are known for this small mintage, and this reflects the sporadic, interrupted nature of Carson City Mint. When a press was set for half dollar manufacture, there was no conscious effort to re-use the same dies as during the last set-up, and this led to numerous different die combinations. Three obverses have been identified, along with some five reverses, one of the latter having been used previously during 1870. All 1871-CC half dollars were coined with a collar having 154 reeds, as in 1870, and all display the same Large CC mintmark. A minor repunched date variety is known, but the rarity and value of this issue diminishes any interest in varieties.Read More
