1917-S 50C Obverse MS(PCGS#6572)

June 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

2140

Grade

MS65

Price

20,740

Lot Description

This is a lovely example of a leading condition rarity among Walking Liberty half dollars. Both sides present as untoned apart from a crescent of reddish-apricot iridescence lining the upper obverse border. The strike is impressively sharp with full detail to all but a few isolated design features. Lustrous with the characteristic stippled texture of an early date half dollar of this type, the surfaces are uncommonly well preserved and worthy of the Gem Mint State grade.<p>The 1917-S Obverse Mintmark keeps company with eight other issues in the Walking Liberty series that had mintages of fewer than one million pieces. Only 952,000 half dollars were struck in 1917 with this mintmark placement, in fact, and for many years this was considered one of the key dates to the series. Today, however, the 1917-S Obverse Mintmark is known to be fairly available in grades from About Uncirculated to MS-63. In MS-64 and MS-65 it remains rare, the PCGS-certified Gem offered here worthy of strong bids.