Douglas Winter Numismatics - The half eagles struck at the Philadelphia mint from 1866 through 1877 include a number of low mintage issues which, while undeniably rare, are curiously underappreciated. I regard some of the issues as among the best values in all of the rare date gold market.
In this article, we will look at each of these issues; both business strikes and Proofs. We will look at the total number of coins known, the typical appearance of each date, discuss the finest known examples and share personal observations I have gleaned from handling many of these issues.
1866This issue has greater overall notoriety than many of the others of this era due to its being a first-year-of-issue. There were 6,700 pieces struck for circulation and around 100 or so are known in total. A small group of 1866 half eagles was recently sold at a European auction and this has made the date a bit more available than in past years. It remains scarce in any grade and it is not often seen above AU55. It is easier to locate than other dates of this era with choice surfaces, and the luster tends to be frosty while many of the dates from the late 1860s are Prooflike. The natural color tends to be a deep russet or reddish-gold and the strike is always sharp. I am aware of around five or six in Uncirculated with the highest graded a single NGC MS63 (last sold as Stack's Bowers 2/2013: 2168 which brought $34,075; it sold earlier for $40,250 as Heritage 9/2008: 3716). PCGS has graded two in MS62 and one in MS62+.
1866 Half Eagle PCGS MS62 CACA total of 30 Proofs were struck. There are likely not more than 10-12 known including one in the Smithsonian and another in the ANS Collection. This is a very rare coin with but one auction appearance since 2010. Surprisingly, there are at least two or possibly even three really nice pieces known including a PCGS/CAC PR66 DCAM which sold for $123,375 in June 2016. The all-time record price for this date is the Byron Reed: 140 coin which brought a remarkable $209,000 back in October 1996.
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Posted 02/03/2021 12:33 pm
