1883 Hawaii Half Dollar. Medcalf-Russell 2CS-4. MS-64 (NGC). CAC.A gorgeous near-Gem example that is largely untoned and brilliant save for the faintest champagne hue across the high points. The fields are lightly reflective and contrast the more richly frosted design elements. A small mark is noted atop King Kalakauas cheek but the surfaces are otherwise smooth. Struck in 1883 at the San Francisco Mint, 699,974 half dollars were produced for use in the Hawaiian Islands. Though the half dollar mintage is the highest among the official Hawaiian issues much of it was melted at a later time when the Hawaiian Islands became a U.S. Territory in 1900.
