1884

The 1884 Half Eagle came out of a steady production year, with 191,030 business strikes joined by 48 proofs for collectors. The catalog total of 191,078 reflects that combined figure, which is why it looks slightly higher than the circulating-only mintage cited in older references. Each coin weighs 8.359 grams and measures 21.6 millimeters, struck on planchets of 90 percent gold and 10 percent copper to the long-running Coronet standard. Christian Gobrecht's Liberty obverse and the heraldic eagle reverse bearing IN GOD WE TRUST were three decades old by this point, but the 1884 dies were freshly prepared and the coins came off the press cleanly. Most of the resulting gold was destined for bank reserves and large commercial settlements rather than over-the-counter circulation.

Authentication starts with weight: anything notably under 8.359 grams should be set aside, since cast counterfeits and gold-plated base-metal copies almost always fail the scale. Diameter should sit at 21.6 millimeters, and a genuine coin will ring with the soft, dense tone characteristic of 22-karat gold rather than the harsh ping of brass. Compare date placement and digit spacing against high-resolution PCGS or NGC plate images. The 1884 has a known repunched-date variety, but transferred-die counterfeits typically show mushy or doubled detail across the entire date area rather than a sharp, isolated repunch. The eagle's shield lines, arrow shafts, and rim beading should be crisp on an unworn original. Edge reeding count and depth provide a final check, since modern fakes often get reed spacing subtly wrong.

For collectors today the 1884 sits comfortably in the affordable middle of the With Motto Half Eagle run. Circulated examples in VF through EF trade in the high-hundreds-of-dollars range driven mostly by gold content, while AU coins move into the low four figures and Mint State pieces command meaningful premiums tied to surface preservation. Coins through MS-63 turn up with some regularity at major auctions, but truly choice pieces above that level are scarcer than the mintage suggests because most survivors saw bank-vault handling. The separately struck 1884 proof, with only 48 minted, is a five-figure coin in any preserved grade and belongs to a different collecting tier entirely. For background on how this date fits the broader run, see the Liberty Head Half Eagle series history.