1805 50C O-111 MS(PCGS#39285)

Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

Auctioneer

Stack's Bowers

Lot Number

3066

Grade

MS61

Price

31,200

Lot Description

Tompkins Die Stage 2/2. Strong luster embraces both sides, ringing the obverse with golden peripheral toning and hints of pastel blue. The dusky gray reverse is more satiny, enlivened by shades of gold, violet, and blue. A handsome specimen for the grade, showing none of the usual wear or marks often seen on coins of this numerical level, though light hairlines are noted beneath the toning on both sides. The strike shows areas of typical bluntness, with all stars but 12 and 13 lacking centers, some rounded features atop Liberty's portrait, and softness in the wingtips and tail. Despite these areas, the eagle's breast is well feathered, the star cluster is mostly bold, and other areas hold their detail well. A very fine die crack joins the tops of the letters ES in STATES and OF to the wingtip below, while another crosses the centers of all letters in AMERICA as it arcs towards the eagle's tail and beyond. Just a beautiful specimen all around.<p>While the Overton-Parsley census lists two Mint State examples from this die marriage, which the more modern (2015) Tompkins census mirrors, the<em> PCGS Population Report</em> includes just seven non-overdate 1805 half dollars graded at the Mint State level from all 12 "normal date" varieties. We can further highlight the awesome rarity and significance of this coin by referring to the <em>CAC Population Report</em>, which lists just two non-overdate 1805 half dollars: the offered coin, stickered in its PCGS MS-61 holder, and an MS-62+ holdered by CACG. The only O-105 coin that is finer than the PCGS/CAA MS-61 offered here is the "Colonel" Green-Newman coin in NGC MS-63+, which has not been verified or certified by CAC/CACG as of this writing.