1798 Large 8, 13 Star Reverse

By 1798, Robert Scot's Heraldic Eagle reverse was settling in as the standard for the half eagle, replacing the small naturalistic bird that had carried the denomination since 1795. The new reverse adapted the Great Seal: a striped shield over the eagle's breast, arrows in one talon, an olive branch in the other, and a constellation of stars above the head. Across the production year, Philadelphia engravers prepared multiple reverse dies, and not every one followed an identical layout for that constellation. Bass-Dannreuther isolates the BD-2 die marriage, which pairs a Large 8 obverse with a reverse die showing thirteen stars arranged differently from the more frequently encountered fourteen-star reverse die used elsewhere in the same year.

Authentication of a genuine BD-2 hinges on two slow visual checks. Count the reverse stars carefully against a Bass-Dannreuther reverse-die plate: this marriage shows thirteen stars in the cloud arrangement above the eagle, distinct from the fourteen-star reverse that defines the more available 1798 die pairs. Then examine the date logic, where this variety carries the Large 8 numeral rather than the Small 8 logged separately by Bass-Dannreuther. Specifications match the broader series at 8.75 grams in 0.9167 fine gold, roughly 25 millimeters across, with a reeded edge and coin alignment, so weight and edge alone cannot distinguish a BD-2 from any other 1798 half eagle. A certified holder with the BD-2 attribution called out is the only defensible foundation for a raw candidate at this rarity tier.

For modern collectors, the 1798 Large 8, 13-Star Reverse pairing is a Key-tier die marriage rather than a type coin. Bass-Dannreuther places the surviving population in the fifteen-to-twenty-five range across all grades, so opportunities to acquire one are tied to major early gold cabinets coming apart rather than routine auction availability. The Pogue Collection sale series and the Harry W. Bass Jr. Foundation holdings each accounted for documented BD-2 specimens. Type collectors who want a 1798 Heraldic Eagle half eagle at lower cost work toward the more available fourteen-star reverse pairings, where survivors are merely scarce. See the full Draped Bust Half Eagle series history.