Seated Liberty Half Dollars
Christian Gobrecht created the Liberty Seated motif for the pattern silver dollars of 1836 and 1838, and the design passed to the half dollar in 1839. Liberty sits facing left on a rock, her left…
Denomination
Half Dollars
8 articles
Capped Bust Half Dollars
John Reich joined the Philadelphia Mint as assistant engraver around 1807, and his Capped Bust portrait was struck on the half dollar before it appeared on any other denomination. Liberty faces left,…
Draped Bust Half Dollars
The obverse of the Draped Bust half dollar shows Liberty facing right, her hair loose behind her shoulders, a ribbon worked through it, drapery across her chest. The date falls below the portrait;…
Kennedy Half Dollars
President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963. Congress authorized a memorial coin within weeks. The Mint was able to move with unusual speed because Gilroy Roberts, the ninth Chief…
Barber Half Dollars (Liberty Head)
The Mint Act of September 26, 1890 authorized coin design changes after 25 years of continuous use, making the dime, quarter, and half dollar eligible for redesign in 1891. Mint Director Edward Leech…
Flowing Hair Half Dollars
Every Flowing Hair half dollar carries lettering on its edge that no other United States coin has ever replicated: FIFTY CENTS OR HALF A DOLLAR. Not just a denomination mark, not a motto, but a…
Walking Liberty Half Dollars
Adolph Weinman came to the Walking Liberty half dollar with a specific formation. He had studied under Augustus Saint-Gaudens around 1896, and Saint-Gaudens' influence runs visibly through the…
Franklin Half Dollars
Mint Director Nellie Tayloe Ross had long wanted a Franklin coin and, after seeing Chief Engraver John R. Sinnock's portrait of the Founding Father on a 1933 medal, she asked him to prepare designs…