1894 Liberty Head Half Eagle. MS-66+ (PCGS). CAC.This is an awe-inspiring coin whose surfaces border on pristine for an 1894 half eagle. Bathed in a blend of billowy mint frost and vivid rose-orange patina, both sides are silky smooth in appearance and free of even the most trivial blemishes. Sharply struck and sure to please even the most discerning gold enthusiast.Half eagles of this era were made in fairly large quantities with some exceptions, and were widely used in commerce, but not in the East and Midwest until after mid December 1879. Gold half eagles were used continuously on the West Coast. Today, there are no prohibitive rarities in the range, although certain varieties, such as Carson City Mint issues, range from scarce to rare, and the 1887 Philadelphia Mint issue was made only in Proof format. It is not known who did the letter punching on the dies under the watch of James B. Longacre as chief engraver, but some of the work was downright sloppy. However, an examination of the word LIBERTY on the coronet of Longacres $1, $3, and $20 gold pieces reveals irregular spacing. Relevant here, the word IN in the motto IN GOD WE TRUST is way out of kilter, certainly an amateurish production.The 1894 was produced in generous numbers -- 957,880 circulation strikes -- and it is readily available, indeed common in such grades as AU or low Mint State. At the uppermost reaches of Gem Uncirculated, however, the present example is a formidable condition rarity. In fact, it is tied for CC#2 with only one other grading event in PCGS MS-66+; the finest certified example is the fabulous PCGS MS-67 that we (American Numismatic Rarities) sold in July 2004 as part of the Oliver Jung Collection. There are no examples of this issue certified finer than MS-66 at NGC.
