1838 Proof Half Dollar Pattern - J-79a

Coin Details

Auction Record

$25,850 PR64 07-27-2013 Stack's Bowers

Description

Cataloged as Judd-79A (Pollock-86) and rated Low R.7, indicating roughly 7 to 12 surviving examples, this silver half dollar pattern pairs the Seated Liberty obverse with Christian Gobrecht's celebrated Flying Eagle reverse. The obverse employs the "straight date" variant with LIBERTY incused on the shield, close to the design adopted for circulation strikes. The reverse shows Gobrecht's eagle in flight, with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA on the upper rim and HALF DOLLAR at the lower margin. Struck in silver with a reeded edge and medallic die orientation. What sets Judd-79A apart from many other 1838 half dollar patterns is the consensus among researchers that no restrikes of this variety exist. Unlike the majority of the 1838 patterns, which were reproduced in the 1860s and 1870s for the collector market, all known examples of this die combination be original strikings produced in 1838. This attribution is supported by the observation that no lightweight restrike specimens have ever been confirmed. With approximately a dozen pieces known, this is among the more obtainable varieties in the 1838 half dollar pattern series, though it remains a genuinely rare coin by any standard.