1859-C $5 Liberty Head Half Eagle PCGS XF45

Here’s an interesting piece from the Charlotte Mint to add to your collection, one that will give you years of pleasure. This issue has a low mintage of 31,847. PCGS has graded 32 as AU55 with 87 finer. Collectors Universe gives this issue a price of $4,500.00 in XF45.

Jeff Garrett writes, “The 1859-C half eagle is an interesting issue in terms of appearance. All of the known examples of the date have a reverse that is very poorly impressed. It is thought that the reverse die was defective in some way. The 1859-C half eagle can be difficult to grade in many cases, as the obverse is usually sharp. Most of the 1859-C half eagles offered are in the Very Fine to Extremely Fine grade range.”

Writes Doug Winter, “When you look at an 1859-C half eagle, you must understand that the obverse is much different than the reverse. In fact, it is almost like looking at two different coins. Some 1859-C half eagles have nice quality obverses with decent detail and good luster. Every known example has numerous mint-made problems. Because of this fact, [the] 1859-C must be graded by its reverse alone.”

U.S. Mint and Assay Office in Charlotte, NC. The Charlotte Mint was the nation’s first branch mint. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.