拍品描述： 1796 Liberty Cap Half Cent. C-2. Rarity-4+. With Pole. Fine-15 (PCGS).This is a lovely coin for the grade, far finer than the typically encountered 1796 half cent of either variety that saw this extensive circulation. Handsome golden-brown patina blankets both sides, the protected areas around the devices with warmer olive-gray highlights. All major design elements are boldly defined except for the letters ALF in HALF, which are faint and only barely discernible. A few trivial marks are evident along the left obverse border, in the right field on the same side, and at the letters I in UNITED, the first S in STATES, and O in OF on the reverse. Otherwise we note a pleasingly smooth appearance in hand with appreciable gloss further enhancing the eye appeal.pThe 1796 is the key date issue among circulation strike half cents. Mint records state that 1,390 half cents were struck during calendar year 1796 and, although we have no way of knowing whether all of those coins were struck from 1796-dated dies, most collectors accept this figure as the total mintage for this issue. Two die marriages are known, both of which were generally struck on rolled copper planchets, as here. Cohen-2 is readily attributable by the presence of the pole supporting the liberty cap, and it is a bit more plentiful than C-1. This variety is very scarce in an absolute sense, of course, and the rarity of the date as a whole has long resulted in strong collector demand for examples at all levels of preservation. Problem free for the assigned grade with a pleasing appearance, the coin offered here is sure to have no difficulty finding its way into an advanced half cent collection.From Ira & Larry Goldbergs sale of the Carvin Goodridge Collection, September 2012.