1796 Liberty Cap Right Half Cent - No Pole - Liberty Cap Right Half Cent (No Pole) Split Die

Description

Struck just four years after the United States Mint began operations in 1792, this 1796 Liberty Cap Right Half Cent shows a split die. The split die — a crack extending completely across the face from rim to rim — runs from 9 o'clock to between 2 and 3 o'clock through Liberty's head, entering through her hair just under the bow and exiting between her nose and lips. A split die of this magnitude represents catastrophic die failure, yet the coin was struck and entered circulation. The No Pole variety is distinguished by the absence of the pole Liberty's cap rests upon. Half cent production at the fledgling Philadelphia Mint was modest, and dies were hand-engraved before hub technology standardized production. The 1796 date carries profound historical weight for collectors of early republic coinage, representing a period when every coin was produced through largely artisanal methods at the young nation's sole mint facility. A split die occurs when a die crack extends completely across the face of the die from rim to rim, effectively splitting the die into two or more pieces. In this case the die crack runs from 9 o'clock to between 2 and 3 o'clock through Liberty's head, entering through her hair just under the bow and exiting between her nose and lips.