1849 Liberty Head Half Eagle
Base
About This Coin
The 1849 Liberty Head Half Eagle is a United States Gold Half Eagle from the Liberty Head Half Eagles 1839-1908 series — an early issue, 11th of 70 years in the series. In 1849, coins were struck at the Philadelphia, Dahlonega, and Charlotte Mints with a combined mintage of 236,932. This ranks 27th of 70 years by total mintage, below the series median of 360,195. The obverse features Liberty facing left wearing a coronet inscribed LIBERTY and the reverse displays a heraldic eagle with shield on breast, olive branch and arrows in talons, with a banner reading E PLURIBUS UNUM. Gold Rush-era production at Philadelphia surged. Charlotte and Dahlonega maintained modest output. Struck in other, weighing 8.36 grams, 21.65 mm in diameter, with a reeded edge. Across its variants, estimated values range from $1.4K to $43K depending on mint mark, grade, and strike type. A notable auction result reached $70K in MS66 grade at Bowers & Merena. Designed by Christian Gobrecht.
Value Estimates
Values as of May 2026 — range across all strike types, reflecting typical grades (G-4 through MS-63). Coins in lower or exceptional grades may fall outside this range.
