Lot 1054
1846 Liberty Seated Half Dollar. 6 over horizontal 6 (error). PCGS graded AU-50. One of the more dramatic "errors" produced by the Philadelphia Mint of the period. Breen speculates that this type of error, the mispunched dates, were a silent protest by Mint workers over the employment of James B. Longacre as mint engraver, replacing the recently deceased C. Gobrecht in 1844. Breen speculates that these errors may have been created by Longacre himself as he would have resented the menial tasks of punching in dates into dies, when he should have been designing new and important coins for circulation. Whatever the cause, the results are fascinating. In this particular instance, the 6 was punched into the die sideways, as though it were taking a little nap, and was later engraved over upright, but both still plainly show. The surfaces are clean, this coin is steel gray with some luster in the fields. On the reverse, the usual die break is present over UNIT.
Estimated Value $600 - 800.
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| Realized $1,121 |
