Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Charles Barber’s half dollar design was introduced in 1892, a beneficiary of the provision of the Mint Act of 1890 which allowed for the design of a coin to be changed every 25 years. And so it was in 1916 that Barber’s designs for the dime, quarter, and half dollar were also set aside; though unlike the smaller denominations, the half dollar of 1916 did not use Barber’s somewhat stoic Liberty design. Director Robert W. Woolley had invited three renown sculptors outside the Mint to produce designs for all three denominations, possibly intending that each coin would display the efforts of a different artist. However, Adolph A. Weinman captured two of the three prizes, for the dime and the half dollar. Hermon A. MacNeil’s design was used for the quarter.

These new designs were representative of the artistic vigor of the early 20th century, following previous changes of that period that included the Lincoln cent; the Indian Head (buffalo) nickel; the incuse Indian Head quarter eagle and half eagles; the two Augustus Saint-Gaudens gold designs, the Indian Head eagle and the eponymous Saint-Gaudens double eagle; the Standing Liberty quarter; and several commemorative issues such as the Panama-Pacific Exposition silver and gold pieces. Weinman was born in Germany but came to the United States as a child. He was a student of Saint-Gaudens and other top sculptors, and gained national recognition for his majestic sculpture Destiny of the Red Man. His design for the half dollar features a full-length representation of Liberty, and on the reverse a powerful depiction of America’s symbol, the bald eagle.

Weinman’s designs were well-received at the time of release and are popular today, perhaps more so for those old enough to remember seeing both the dime and half dollar in circulation prior to the run-up of silver prices in the mid-1960s. The artistic merit of the half dollar unfortunately did not translate into technical merit when the coins were struck, and many dates are weakly struck. This was because areas of high relief on the design were opposite each other, and thus weakness is often seen on Liberty’s left hand and leg and the eagle’s breast and leg feathers. In hopes of improving striking quality Engraver George T. Morgan made modifications in 1918 and 1921, followed by those of John R. Sinnock in the late 1930s, but neither produced significant improvements. Liberty Walking half dollars, variously known as “Walkers” and Walking Liberty halves, were produced through 1947, replaced by John R. Sinnock’s Franklin design; his Roosevelt dime also replaced Weinman’s ‘Mercury’ dime. While often assembled as a complete set, some collect only the “short sets” of either 1934 through 1947, or 1941 through 1947.

A full-length, striding figure of Liberty is displayed on the obverse, walking to the left. She wears a soft cap, Roman-style sandals with crossed ties, and a long flowing garment of alternating solid and vertically-striped panels. Her right arm is outstretched, reaching nearly to the flat rim of the coin, while her left holds a ‘bouquet’ of long oak and laurel (or olive) branches. Behind Liberty, and wrapped partially around her left arm, an American flag of stars and stripes billows, pushed forward by an implied wind at her back. At the bottom left is the sun with rays, partially obscured by a mountainous rise. The word LIBERTY surrounds a little more than the top half of the flat rim, the L overlapping a sun ray, and BER partially obscured by Liberty, the flag, and the branch leaves. To the right, near the bottom is IN GOD WE TRUST, the words on two lines, and the date is at the center of the bottom, below the level plain upon which Liberty walks. Half dollars minted at San Francisco and Denver in 1916, and part of 1917, display S and D mintmarks below IN GOD WE TRUST.

On the reverse a majestic standing eagle, wings partially uplifted, stands on a rock outcrop facing left, the right claw clutching a pine branch (showing both needles and cones) said to be symbolic of America. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is placed near the flat rim above the eagle, and HALF DOLLAR is at the bottom. E PLURIBUS UNUM, UNUM on a separate line, is placed at the left center just above the tips of the pine branch. Center dots separate adjacent words of the text phrases, with an additional dot following AMERICA. The designer’s initials AW, the A nested beneath the W, are at the bottom right, just to the right of the rocky perch. Liberty Walking half dollars minted at Denver and San Francisco from the latter part of 1917 through the end of the series have D and S mintmarks located at the lower left, between the left of the edge of the rocky outcrop and the rim.

A few hundred thousand business strike Liberty Walking half dollars have been certified, more of dates from 1934 forward. The census includes a very few prooflike pieces. Half dollars for circulation were not minted in 1922, 1924 through 1926, and 1930 through 1932. Prices are modest through MS63 for some issues prior to 1933, and for most dates post-1933 to MS65. Higher priced coins are most pre-1934 issues finer than MS60, particularly 1916-S, 1917-D and 1917-S Obverse Mintmark, and most 1919 through 1921 examples; and 1934-S, 1938-D, and 1946 Doubled Die Obverse, the last two expensive as Gem and finer. Proofs were minted from 1936 through 1942, and thousands are listed in census/ population reports, though very few have received the Cameo designation. The 1936 is the highest priced issue, expensive to very expensive at all grades, followed by the Cameo examples of various dates. The remaining proofs are modestly priced through PR64 (PR66 for 1940s examples other than Cameo), expensive finer.

Specifications:
Designer: Adolph A. Weinman
Circulation Mintage: high 53,190,000 (1943), low 208,000 (1921-D)
Proof Mintage: high 21,120 (1942), low 3,901 (1936)
Denomination: Fifty cents (50/100)
Diameter: 30.6 mm, reeded edge
Metal Content: 90% silver, 10% copper
Weight: 12.5 grams
Varieties: Several known, including 1917-D and 1917-S Obverse Mintmark; 1916 D Over D; 1928 S, Small S and Large S; 1934-D, Small D and Large D; 1936 Doubled Die Obverse; 1942 Doubled Die Reverse; 1942-S, Small S and Large S; 1946 Doubled Die Obverse and Doubled Die Reverse; and other minor die variations.

Additional Resources:
CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 04/24/2009

Photos used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Description:
Robert Patterson, a respected scholar with ties to President Thomas Jefferson, was appointed Director of the U.S. Mint in 1805. As Director, he was instrumental in the ascension of John Reich to the position of Second Engraver under Chief Engraver Robert Scot. Reich came to this country from Germany as an indentured servant to get away from the Napoleonic Wars. Patterson gave to the talented Reich the responsibility of revamping the designs of U.S. coins, a task applied to the half cent for the 1809 issue. Reich was an assistant under Engraver Robert Scot, who apparently was unwilling to give Reich the same credit for his abilities as did both the Mint Director and the President. After not receiving a pay raise in the nearly ten years since his appointment, and seeing his designs modified by Scot during his tenure, Reich resigned from the Mint in 1817.

Reich’s portrayal of Liberty was more reserved than the previous Draped Bust design and was reminiscent of classical art, though the Classic Head name was not attached to the design until 1868 by Ebenezer Mason. Mason’s label was apparently due to the depiction of a fillet, Liberty’s narrow headband, that dates to ancient Greece. The depiction of the fillet was considered incongruous because only young males wore the band in ancient times, as a prize awarded to the winners of athletic contests. A harsher criticism, born of rumor or disdain (or both), was that Liberty was a representation of Reich’s “fat mistress”. There were issues more serious than those of artistic merit, however, in that by 1809 the growth of commerce in this country was minimizing the value of the half cent as a denomination for transactions. This situation, combined with a shortage of copper planchets from the English firm of Boulton & Watt during the War of 1812, resulted in suspension of half cent production after 1811.

Minting of half cents resumed in 1825, presumably in response to orders by a Baltimore merchant, though the new coins had design modifications by Chief Engraver William Kneass (Scot died in 1823 and Reich had left years earlier). Even with the orders, more half cents were produced than needed, and no coins of the denomination were minted in 1827 or 1830, though production resumed in 1831. 1836 half cents were made only as proofs, and in the mid-19th century restrikes of some dates, both circulation and proof, were made. No half cents were produced from 1837 through 1839, but some include an 1837 privately issued Hard Times token as part of a period half cent collection.

Reich’s Liberty faces left, displaying a more reserved and mature countenance than the previous Draped Bust type. Her long, curling hair drapes over the forehead, around the ear, down the side and back of the neck, and is tied at the back. The headband prominently displays the word LIBERTY across the facing side. A circle of dentils or beads follows along the rim. Thirteen six-point stars frame the portrait, seven to the left and six to the right; a notable 1828 variety has twelve stars, seven to the left and five to the right. The date is located below the portrait at the bottom. The reverse features a dentilled rim, within which is a concentric circle formed by UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, broken at the bottom by the tied ends of a laurel branch with berries that forms an inner wreath. At the center is the denomination of HALF CENT, the words on separate lines with a centered dot between; a short horizontal line is under CENT. All half cents of the type were minted at Philadelphia and show no mintmark.

A few thousand business strike Classic Head half cents have been certified, though some varieties and color types are represented by fewer than 100 pieces, and some by fewer than 10 examples. Coins are described as Brown (BN), Red-Brown (RB), or Red (RD), with RB examples less common than BN, and RD the most scarce. Prices are moderate for many issues up to MS63, but are expensive finer than that, particularly for RB and the scarce RD examples. Higher priced dates include 1811 and 1831, the latter the most expensive coin of the type. Very few proof examples were minted, from 1831 through 1836, though one Specimen example for 1811 is listed in census/ population reports. Some proofs are restrikes, all are rare and expensive at PR60 to very expensive as PR63 and finer; all Original 1831 proof half cents are very expensive

Specifications:
Designer: John Reich, modified by Robert Scot and William Kneass
Circulation Mintage: high 1,154,572 (1809), low 51,000 (1832, estimated)
Proof Mintage: none reported or known, 1809-1829; 25 (1831-1836, estimated)
Denomination: One half cent (005/100)
Diameter: 23.5 mm, plain edge
Metal Content: 100% copper
Weight: 5.44 grams
Varieties: Several known including 1809 Small o Inside O and 9 Over Inverted 9; 1811 Wide Date, Close Date, and Reverse of 1802 (restrike); 1828 13 Stars and 12 Stars; 1831 Large Berries Reverse of 1836 and Small Berries Reverse of 1840-1857 (restrike, proof); 1836 Reverse of 1840-1857 (restrike, proof); and other minor die variations.

Additional Resources:
CoinFacts: www.coinfacts.com
Coin Encyclopedia: www.ngccoin.com
Early American Coppers: www.eacs.org
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of Early United States Half Cents 1793-1857. Walter Breen. American Institute of Numismatic Research.
The Official Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins. R.S Yeoman (author), Kenneth Bressett (editor). Whitman Publishing.
A Guide Book of United States Type Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
United States Coinage: A Study by Type. Ron Guth and Jeff Garrett. Whitman Publishing.
The Experts Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins. Q. David Bowers. Whitman Publishing.
The U.S. Mint and Coinage. Don Taxay. Arco Publishing.
Walter Breen’s Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins. Walter Breen. Doubleday.

Last Updated : 04/24/2009