Seated Liberty Half Dollars 1839-1891

About This Series

Spanning fifty-three years of production, Gobrecht's Seated Liberty Half Dollar accompanied the nation through its most transformative decades. The obverse features Liberty seated on a rock with liberty pole and Phrygian cap, while the reverse displays a heraldic eagle. Multiple subtypes emerged from legislative changes: No Motto (1839-1866), Arrows and Rays (1853 only, a popular one-year type), Arrows at Date (1854-1855), IN GOD WE TRUST added (1866), and final Arrows period (1873-1874). Carson City issues from 1870-1878 are highly collectible, bearing the CC mintmark connecting them to the Comstock Lode silver boom. The 1878-S marks the final regular issue. New Orleans coins struck before the Civil War are notably scarce, as the Confederacy seized the facility in 1861. Half dollars remained the primary large silver coin in American commerce throughout this period, circulating more widely than silver dollars and serving as the standard denomination for significant retail transactions before widespread paper currency adoption.

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