1849 1/2C, BN MS(PCGS#1218)

1849 1/2C, BN MS (PCGS#1218)

Spring 2026 Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Lot Description: Manley Die State 1.0. This splendid example represents one of only eight grading events at PCGS for a Gem Mint State 1849 half cent, all of which are in the BN category. Rich medium brown patina dominates the coin's appearance, but both sides retain plenty of pinkish-red mint color in the protected areas around the design elements. Sharply struck with smooth and well composed surfaces as expected at the assigned grade. By the end of fiscal year 1836 (June 30), the Philadelphia Mint's backlog of half cents amounted to 539,000 coins, and coinage of the Classic Head design was suspended until these could be distributed. This was likely to take a while, given the unpopularity of this denomination at the time, and it was not until 1849 that circulation strike production resumed. (Even then, 70,258 Classic Head coins were still on hand by September 30, 1848.) Christian Gobrecht's Braided Hair motif had already been in use for Proof half cent coinage since 1840, and it was this design type that would continue until the end of the series in 1857. The planchets for all circulation strike half cents of this era, 1849 to 1857, were supplied by Crocker Brothers & Co. of Taunton, Massachusetts.