The Coolest Overdate Ever: The 1817/3 Bust Half Dollar

I personally love this overdate and think it is the coolest overdate ever minted. It has often been admired for the distinction of the 3 under the 7, but the really cool part is how the error came about.

The U.S. Mint was going through troubled times during its early years. A lack of resources to strike coins on and make planchets from is visible in early federal coinage. In 1816, a huge fire broke out which destroyed most of the mint and halted the coining of silver and gold coins.

The mint's struggles can be seen in the capped bust half dollar series. 1815 featured a mere 47,150 coins struck, and (largely due to the fire) no coins were struck in 1816. The first half dollars struck in 1817 were the 1817/3 and 1817/4 varieties. The 1817/4 is virtually unattainable, as there are currently 9 coins in existence. The 1817/3, while being a tough and expensive coin in higher grades, is relatively available.

I currently own two 1817/3 overdates. One of them is a significantly earlier die state than the other, as evidenced by the strength of the underlying 3. Also, while both look at first glance to be VG/F coins, the consensus among bust half experts I have talked to is that both are choice VF coins.

A couple of close ups here really accentuate the strength of the overdate:




As you can see, the top coin clearly has a much stronger 3. But even in a relatively late die state, the bottom coin still has a much stronger overdate than most of the other overdates ever produced.

And here's a couple of pictures of the entire coins. Notice how the 3 just jumps out at you, especially in the top coin.