1796 50C 16 Stars MS(PCGS#6058)

November 2025 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

2073

等级

VF25

价格

575,946

详细说明

Amato Unlisted. Tompkins Die Stage 4/2. We are pleased to be offering an example of both of the dates in the brief Draped Bust, Small Eagle half dollar series of 1796 to 1797 in the current sale of the Christopher M. Brookfield Collection. This 1796 Overton-102 is warmly toned in dusky mauve-gray with some intermingled light olive highlights evident as the surfaces rotate under a light. The impression is well centered on both sides, wear moderate yet even, all major design elements boldly outlined and readily appreciable. Microscopic roughness to the texture and a few wispy, well scattered marks require magnification to discern, while a tiny nick in the reverse field above the eagle's left wing is mentioned solely as a useful provenance marker. The in hand appearance is smooth and uncommonly appealing in a moderately circulated survivor of this scarce and challenging design type.<p>Although composed of coins dated 1796 and 1797, the Draped Bust, Small Eagle half dollar series was issued for just one year. Only 3,918 examples were delivered in four warrants from February 28 to May 26, 1797. Today, probably no more than 300 half dollars of this challenging design type can be accounted for, signifying a survival rate of less than 10%. Subsequent to 1797 no half dollars were minted until 1801, at which time the Heraldic Eagle design was adopted for the reverse. The 1796 O-102 variety is the scarcest in this series with Very Fine, as here, representing the median grade among survivors. The present example is not listed in the extensive census published by Jon P. Amato in his 2012 reference <em>The Draped Bust Half Dollars of 1796-1797</em>. It is a significant and desirable coin that would do equally well in an advanced type collection or specialized early half dollar variety set.