Lot 1517
1939. PCGS graded MS-68. CAC Approved. Soft pastel colors grace the immaculate surfaces on both sides. Do not see how a more beautiful example could exist! Pop 21; 3 finer in 68+. (PCGS # 6606)
A. A. Weinman's Walking Liberty half dollar, highly regarded today, evoked mixed reactions when it made its debut. "At last we have on our coins the great American eagle in a natural, lifelike form," The Numismatist said. "As represented on the half dollar he is, as the small boy would say, 'some bird,' and his size and proportions are in keeping with the greatness and power of the country."However, ornithologist Frank M. Chapman chided, "The artist has made this bird a terrestrial fowl, striding or marching on the ground like a turkey- cock, and with as much dignity as one." Another critic said, "The eagle looks as though it were wearing overalls and marching through hot tar." Still another said, "Liberty in sandals taking giant strides across its face might burn her toes if she should step one millimeter nearer the rising sun." Although The Numismatist called the Standing Liberty quarter strikingly beautiful, New York Times saw it as "some too darkly veiled allegory of the Woman's Party and the suffrage movement." Philadelphia coin dealer Henry Chapman offered 1916 Standing Liberty quarters for a dollar a piece. Estimated Value $7,500-UP
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