1839-1908 Liberty Half Eagles
Mintages for the Liberty Half Eagles cover a wide range, from just a few hundred pieces for certain issues to multiple millions. This results in the series containing both great rarities and extremely common issues. The series was produced between 1839 and 1908 and struck at seven different mints. This included the Philadelphia Mint, the […]
The Philadelphia Mint struck Proof Liberty Half Eagles (Buy on eBay) throughout the course of the series. The mintages and availability vary widely, with the earlier Proof dates extremely elusive. In 1887, the Philadelphia Mint did not produce coins for circulation, but struck coins in Proof format only. For the initial portion of the series […]
The 1875 Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) represents another great rarity of the series, with merely 200 pieces struck for circulation. Of this amount, it is estimated that only eight examples have survived. Collectors typically only have a chance to acquire this issue when a significant collection is broken up and sold. All known […]
The weight and gold content of the Liberty Half Eagles was specified under the Coinage Act of 1837. The denomination carried a composition of 90% gold and 10% copper, with a weight of 8.36 grams or 129 grains. The diameter was 22.5 mm from 1839 to 1840, but reduced to 21.6 mm for the remainder […]
In 1887, the Philadelphia Mint struck the half eagle in proof format only, with no regular circulation strikes produced during the year. This is the sole proof-only issue for the entire denomination. The 1887 Proof Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) had a reported mintage of 87 pieces. Of this amount, a number of unsold […]
The 1870-CC Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) is one of the most popular coins of the series, as the first issue for the denomination struck at the Carson City Mint. Following the discovery of the Comstock Lode, the branch mint was authorized by Congress in 1863, although groundbreaking did not take place until 1866. […]
The 1869 Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) had a mintage of 1,760 and is counted amongst the rarest issues of the series. This coin was produced during the reconstruction period following the American Civil War, which saw lower mintages for gold coins at the Philadelphia Mint. Less than 10% of the total mintage of […]
Official mint records indicate a mintage of 1,597 for the 1861-D Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay), but this only tells part of the story. After this initial production, the Dahlonega Mint was seized by the Confederate government at the start of the American Civil War. Prior to the end of the year, an estimated […]
The 1854-S Liberty Head Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) is an extremely rare and famous issue, struck during the first year of operations at the San Francisco Mint. From the miniscule mintage of 268 pieces, there are only four examples known to exist. All are in circulated grades. It has been suggested that the extraordinarily […]
The 1847-O Liberty Half Eagle (Buy on eBay) represents the rarest coin for the denomination struck at the New Orleans Mint and one of the more elusive coins of the series. The original mintage was 12,000 pieces, but the issue experienced heavy attrition in circulation. An estimated 50 to 60 examples of the coin are […]