1817 CBH Is Screaming At Me

Yes, it's the grade. It's a Condition Rarity, very tough in a grade over XF and possibly rarer than the R2 designator might indicate, overall. Of 812 sales of 1817 Halves in the Heritage archive, only 22 are O-112, and only 5 of those AU or better. And remember, Bust Halves have been attributed for so long that very few are sold in a major venue unattributed.

In truth, there's no real way to form an accurate opinion of this coin's value - too little history exists for it. The more I contemplate it, the less worried I am about $500 as a price for it. Were I noD, depending on how the coin looks in-hand I'd be seriously considering throwing this one at NCS. If it makes it into a righteous slab at the slam-dunk AU55 technical grade, the first high-end Bust Half Nut Club member to see it would pull $1500 from his wallet so fast your head would spin.

Good purchases come from in-depth knowledge of a particular issue or series. You certainly seems to know bust halves. I hope it looks as good or better in-hand.

If it screamed at you, you might as well have screamed back, which you did. Nice move.

And a very nice coin it is!
Seeing the coins you post, for some some reason I am starting to get the urge to collect bust halves.....

Beautiful coin. I'm sure you'll be quite happy with it.

Sweet pickup!

Oh, man, what a technically superior coin. Tiny tics at Star 11, and the small scratch at 5:00 reverse, are the only distractions. I can see why it was cleaned from the reverse, but this one makes a strong case for an AU58 technical grade. A prime candidate - if it's not hairlined - for windowsill aging.

I've always been a fan of "AU65" coins - barely-circulated examples with excellent features - and this is a prime one. You'd need at least MS64 to match the technical quality of this piece, and probably 65.

Great buy.