1843 50C Liberty Seated Half Dollar NGC SE Ex.SS New York

A rare Liberty Seated half dollar at a great price!

Here’s a unique piece to include in your collection: a shipwreck effect Liberty Seated half dollar from 1843. Research suggests extensive use of the Liberty Seated half dollar as an instrument of international trade in China. Disparities between the total mintages of these coins versus the number encapsulated implies that significant numbers of Liberty Seated halves were sent to the Orient.

The mintage of half dollars at the Philadelphia Mint in 1843 was 3,844,000. However, there are only 927 total original examples of that issue graded by PCGS and NGC, representing a miniscule 0.024 percent of its production. That indicates that perhaps a few million 1843 half dollars were shipped to China in trade.

A chopmarked 1852-O Liberty Seated half dollar, providing evidence that such coins were sent to China in trade. Photo: Heritage Auction Galleries.