1792 Washington President Getz Pattern - Small Eagle Ornamented Edge Half Dollar

Coin Details

Description

Combining three distinctive features — the WASHINGTON PRESIDENT obverse legend, the small naturalistic eagle reverse, and a decorative ornamented edge — this 1792 Getz Pattern half dollar represents one of the rarest configurations among Peter Getz's proposed coinage designs. Cataloged as Baker 25, Musante GW-24, and Whitman 10695, the ornamented edge variant required an additional manufacturing step beyond standard plain-edge production, as the decorative edge pattern was applied through a separate collar or edge-lettering device. The obverse features a draped bust of Washington with the controversial WASHINGTON PRESIDENT inscription — a title formulation that some contemporaries found objectionably monarchical, potentially contributing to Congress's ultimate rejection of portrait coinage in favor of the allegorical Liberty designs adopted for official United States issues. The small eagle reverse presents a naturalistic bird perched on a branch, contrasting with the heraldic spread-eagle that would later become the standard reverse motif for American silver coinage. Peter Getz of Lancaster, Pennsylvania engraved the dies as a speculative proposal for the new nation's coinage during the formative months when the first United States Mint was being established in Philadelphia. Extremely rare by any measure, the ornamented edge configuration is among the rarest of all Getz half dollar combinations, with only a handful of specimens documented across public and private collections, making auction appearances exceedingly infrequent.

Rarity Notes

Extremely rare. One of the rarest Getz half dollar configurations.

Cross References

Baker 25; Musante GW-24; Whitman 10695