41 Days Of Seated Liberty Half Dollars

I actually wanted the hole in this one. The hole doesn't bother me as I bought it (only $20) for the history behind the coin, the detail at low cost, and the history of the New Orleans mint in 1861, and got a bonus when I identified it as being one of the dies associated with the Confederacy minting it. I like to imagine a confederate soldier, loved one, or CSA sympathizer wearing this coin around their neck during the US civil war. The New Orleans mint changed hands 3 times in early 1861 - from the US to the state of Louisiana, to the CSA. For those having an 1861-O, I have 2 excellent articles on Die Marriages of 1861-O Half Dollars By Randall E. Wiley that I converted from Word to PDF. The first will let you identify the die marriages and who minted the coin (US, LA, or CSA). With this info. I was able to identify my coin as from the last batch of halves minted by the CSA before the mint was closed to further coinage in April, 1861.

The second article is about the identification and number of the 1861-O die marriages found on the shipwreck of the SS Republic.

If you'd like the articles (not available online that I know of) send me an email (address in my profile) so I can send the 2 PDF files.

It's not very often that we can identify a lot of the history of a certain coin.



The "speared olive bud" reverse that identified this one as being minted by the CSA:

mackwork thanks for sharing the pictures and the story behind the coin. I'm always so impressed by the history including who might have produced the coin and who had that coin in their pocket.

Absolutely! That's one of the very best things about coin collecting; the history of, not only the coin type, but the accompanying history of our country too!

PM sent to Mackwork. I would love to see the articles you discussed!

I really like the massive mintmark on my 1861S

That's gargantuan! (I've got a 1875 S that has the micro S. It's about one quarter the size of that S!!)

1862 Seated Liberty Half Dollar




1862 S Seated Liberty Half Dollar

Here's my 1862 S Half Dollar. The S is larger - does that mean it's worth more?

Enjoying the show! Thanks