1913-D 50C Barber Half Dollar, PCGS MS64+ (CAC)

It is with pleasure that we at AUCM present for your consideration a 1913-D Barber half dollar, graded PCGS MS64+ (CAC). This would be a great addition to a type set of U.S. half dollars! It is quite elusive in Gem (MS65)--but this near-Gem piece, in MS64+ (CAC)--has the look of a gem at a much better price! You could also put together a short type set of coins designed by Charles E. Barber: the Barber dime, quarter, and half, as well as the Liberty nickel.

President Theodore Roosevelt said that the coinage of Charles E. Barber was "artistically of atrocious hideousness," and Barber coinage has seen much criticism over the years; however, many sophisticated collectors enjoy the oft maligned designs. Barber has a champion in numismatic scholar and art critic Cornelius Vermeule, who writes that, "...Liberty's cap, incised diadem, and wreath of laurel were designed to echo all the depth and volume of her Olympian countenance. The classical substances are offset, almost literally, by the sharply rectangular dentils of the raised rim and the strength of 13 six-pointed stars. On the [reverse] ... an equal constellation of stars ... is clustered above the eagle's shaggy, craggy profile. On both sides the simple dignity of motto, legend, and denomination binds the pictorialism into a cohesive tondo. The wealth of irregular surfaces and sharp angles is an almost electrifying aesthetic experience. ... specimens [are] a pleasure to contemplate. The sculptor was unsurpassed in the mechanics of creating a durable design of monumental validity."