1848 Half Dime, Medium Print With What Looks Like Wear On The A, L, And I On The Back.

I'll say AU details (cleaned and badly scratched).



to the CCF!

It's a severely damaged (reverse) 1848-O (New Orleans mint) Half Dime. The obverse is also damaged but not nearly as bad. It is 90% silver but the numismatic value is mostly gone as a result of the damage.

Still a very cool metal detecting find and as a better date it is worth a $20 or $30 as a hole filler.

to the CCF

Cool find, what with XF details, I say; this, despite the damage. My guess is that someone once tried to remove the "AL" from HALF in order to leave the "H_F" initials. If so, damage to the "I" may have been unintentional. The rim damage could possibly have resulted from it once having been mounted as a jewelry item .... mounted as part of a ring, bracelet, broach or necklace?. Early silver coins were often mistreated like this to create so-called "love tokens" for mementos. I'm in accord with the $20-$30 valuation.

The best that any of us can do is to speculate as to what caused and/or precipitated environmental damage to artifacts like this. The mystery is part of the fun of owning pieces like this!