1961 50C Doubled Die Reverse, CAM PR(PCGS#86689)

June 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

2156

Grade

PR66+CAM

Price

17,080

Lot Description

A virtually perfect specimen of this popular Doubled Die Reverse variety. The surfaces are platinum-white and sport outstanding field to device contrast of the kind rarely seen in examples of this Fivaz-Stanton number. Both sides are without flaws beneath a glass.<p>The 1961 Doubled Die Reverse has a loyal following not only for its scarcity but for the strong doubling of the reverse, most easily noticed in the motto E PLURIBUS UNUM. It is, in fact, the strongest known Doubled Die of the Franklin series and, per Rick Tomaska (2018), "is the king of the 20th-century Proof half dollar error varieties." The author further describes Cameo specimens as "extremely rare" and, indeed, PCGS has bestowed a CAM designation on only four different occasions. This dazzling upper end Gem is the second-finest of the quartet, the highest graded that have secured CAC approval, and would serve as a centerpiece in the finest advanced Franklin half dollar collection on the Set Registry.