1861 (1879) Scott Confederate Half Dollar Token. Breen-8003. White Metal. About Uncirculated, Reverse Cleaned (Uncertified).Silvery luster shines forth from the Confederate Seal side, mellowed to deeper gray in the fields, and essentially free of the tin pest or raised oxidation which is so prevalent on examples of this composition. The reverse presents in attractive silver gray, yet with wispy hairlines that suggest an old cleaning. Very few contact marks are seen, and the overall eye appeal is strong. The soft metal of these tokens took the designs quite readily during the striking process, making them the most completely struck and well detailed representations available from the now untraced Confederate half dollar die. Struck by J.W. Scott after acquiring the dies and before using it to "restrike" 500 1861-dated Liberty Seated half dollars into Confederate half dollars. Scott, worried that the die might fail in the process of striking the harder silver of the half dollars, produced these soft white metal tokens to have a marketable product to show for his efforts in the event of premature die failure. Fortunately for numismatics his worries were unfounded, as the die survived through 500 white metal strikes for the tokens, which he offered for 50 cents apiece in 1879, as well as through 500 "restrikes" on silver Federal half dollars.From the Wealth of the South Collection. Earlier from our (Stacks) sale of June 1989, lot 1839. Lot tag included.
