Is This Real? 1792 Half Disme Found In A Junk Silver Bin? Update: Sold For Big$!

Hard to say with the level of wear and my inexperience with Half Dismes, but the date doesn't appear suspect and the details that are there look right to me.

I'd be willing to say real, but that's out on a limb and without too much research

Way over my pay grade.

Looks like the real deal to me. If it were mine it would be well on its way to TPG!

. Not my wheelhouse either, but a crazy find, if it's the real deal.

I would agree with many of you, I think whoever found this in the junk box is the winner for today in the coin community. Right place, right time, right price!

The book "1792: Birth of a Nation's Coinage" by Pete Smith, Joel J. Orosz, and Len Augsburger lists every one of these known and would be a good reference to consult with the coin in hand. There are photos of pretty much each example as well. I can't say from the photos either, but it does look pretty good. Wear is consistent with these coins and nothing is jumping out at me that says fake.

The book I mention is from Heritage Auctions and runs $40.00 + S&H it's a fantastic read in itself. Lots of research on Jefferson and the founding and creation of the US Mint. The 1792 Half Disme being the primary coin of the book, the authors also touch on all the other coinage from 1792.

Following is the description from Heritage's page on the book:

1792: Birth of a Nation's Coinage is the long-awaited research-based study of the 1792 coins, which were produced during the first six months of the U.S. Mint's existence. These cents, Half Dismes, dismes, and mysterious eagle-on-globe pieces, have been little studied and long misunderstood. In the 225 years since they were struck, mysteries have accumulated around them. Legends have explained their origins, arguments have raged over their status, and wild guesses have been taken about their rarity.

1792: Birth of a Nation's Coinage begins with the "prehistory" of the Mint, covering the legislative debates leading to the passage of the Mint Act in April of 1792, and the concurrent experiments in coinage by private individuals seeking government coinage contracts. The book does not solve every mystery about the coinage of 1792, but it does debunk some myths (George and Martha Washington's silver service was not melted to strike Half Dismes); settle some arguments ( Half Dismes are regular issues, not patterns); and defines the rarity of each issue of 1792 (a detailed census of every locatable specimen is provided, along with each coin's pedigree). Along the way, many new facts and insights are revealed; for instance, while Washington did not provide the silver to strike Half Dismes, another future President did! Whether you are a collector, a dealer, a cataloger, or just fascinated by the enigmatic coins that serve as a bridge between the colonial, state, and Confederation issues that went before, and the myriad federal issues that have followed, 1792: Birth of a Nation's Coinage is a must-read book.

The entire photos are reversed (selfie mode), but the coin looks 100% real to me.