HALF DIME 1837-1838 Liberty Seated, No Stars

This is the first coin to be struck in a true proportion of 90% silver and 10% copper. Why the Mint changed here with this coin is a puzzle. It is also the first coin to feature Miss Liberty seated on a rock. It begs the question, "Was Miss Liberty seated in those designs that displayed only her Bust?"

The Liberty Seated motif, used on half dimes from 1837 through the end of the series in 1873, was produced in 1837 at the Philadelphia Mint and 1838 at the New Orleans Mint, in the format without obverse stars, thus isolating these two issues as a separate type. The obverse depicts Miss Liberty seated on a rock, her left hand holding a liberty cap on a pole and her right hand holding a shield inscribed LIBERTY. The date is at the bottom border. The reverse consists of an open wreath tied with a ribbon, enclosing HALF DIME, with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounding. Mintage figures reveal that 1,405,000 of the 1837 Philadelphia issue were produced while only 70,000 were made of the 1838-0. Specimens are readily obtainable in grades from Good through Extremely Fine. The type collector will direct his attention to the 1837, for in every grade the 1838-0 is considerably more expensive. In AU and Uncirculated preservation the Philadelphia coin is available without difficulty. The design without stars was used on circulating coinage only in the half dime and dime series and not on the quarter or half dollar (in the dollar series, the without-stars motif appears only in pattern form in 1836).

Higher grade Uncirculated pieces are quite elusive. Uncirculated examples of 1838-0 are exceedingly rare. Don't let anyone convince you this is a prize of little value. The Half Dime, during this era was becoming a popular coin of commerce. To find one of higher quality is very special indeed.