1864 Seated Liberty Half Dollar, Choice Very Fine, Scarce Civil War Date
1864 Seated Liberty Half Dollar, Choice Very Fine, Scarce Civil War Date
A tough low mintage Civil War date, with less than 400,000 struck; PCGS CoinFacts suggests maybe 800 known in all grades. Even is taken with a grain of salt, that is not a lot of coins. The reason for the low mintage should be obvious: the almost total impossibility of Silver coinage to stay in circulation during the War due to almost instant hoarding. Likely the majority of coins were struck specifically for export in trade. Oddly enough, not specifically rare in higher circulated or Uncirculated grades, due to the discovery of a hoard in the 1950’s in Central America - this supports the export theory. In any case, this is a nice solid VF+ coin, equivalent to what would normally certify VF-30 (or perhaps 35 on a really good day). This appears original, or at least commercially so - it may have been lightly cleaned a very long time ago, however no obvious signs now, just my normal suspicion. However, the Reverse rim shows some scuffing around the perimeter, sign the coin was slid across something harder/rougher at some point while in storage. This might prevent normal certification, however I think this coin belongs in an album page, where that relatively minor defect would largely escape notice. My price is adjusted for this, and it is certainly otherwise a very nice coin.