Lot 1066
1863 Liberty Seated Half Dollar. PCGS graded Proof 62 Premium Quality. Very PQ in fact! Those experts down at the beach were mighty tough on this one. We've seen some recently made halves in 64 slabs that are no better. Surely not prettier! This coin has a vibrant film of iridescent golden blue toning atop deep mirrors and is really a visual treat.
Back in 1863 nobody except war profiteers and the idle rich (not many of those boys) thought about collecting anything but their sanity and a new life. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation legally terminated slavery, but had no effect in the Confederacy, of course. It flamed the war further, however. In May at Chancellorsville, Stonewall Jackson was killed but the South nonetheless inflicted one of its bloodiest victories on the Union. Then came Gettysburg in July, in which General Lee was defeated at a cost of 51,000 soldiers killed on both sides. In the middle of this horrific war, some Proof coins were saved--and it's a miracle any of them have come down to us. A few hairlines? They should not matter a hair by comparison with the history this beautiful coin--an enduring symbol of the Union of our states--has gone through.
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| Realized $506 |
