Heritage World Coin Auctions
Long Beach Signature US Coin Sale 1256 8-9 Jun 2017
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Early Half Dollars
1794 50C O-107, T-5, R.6, Fine 15 PCGS. The very scarce Overton-107 (Tompkins-5) variety is the sole use of this obverse die on a Flowing Hair half dollar -- an interesting fact, since the variety is only known with a perfect obverse and shows no signs of the die's early demise. Nor did the reverse die fail during the O-107 marriage, because it appears on two subsequent 1794 marriages. The position of Star 1 is diagnostic, where the point of the star touches the first curl, but does not overlap it or extend beyond the curl. In total, six obverse dies were employed when striking 11 known die marriages that comprise the small mintage of 1794 half dollars, the first year of both the denomination and the Flowing Hair design.
Attractive gunmetal-gray fields contrast with light, silver-gray raised devices for a pleasing "circulation cameo" appearance. The obverse is smooth and appealing for the grade, despite moderate adjustment marks that angle downward across the hair recess near the ear. The similarly toned reverse shows a minor edge bump above ES of STATES and a short scrape at the eagle's left leg above the talon. Overall, the coin is well-defined for the Choice Fine grade. All 1794 half dollars are scarce and in-demand and this important O-107 is a prize for any variety collector. It clearly ranks in the Condition Census for the die pair, tied with one other example for fifth in the Tompkins reference listed as 25, 20, 20, 20, 15, 15, 12. We note that the Census does not include the outstanding O-107 we sold in the April, 2017 Central States Platinum Night event graded XF45 NGC as lot 4041, which brought $42,300 from the Terry Brand Estate.
HID02901242017
1794 50C O-107, T-5, R.6, Fine 15 PCGS. The very scarce Overton-107 (Tompkins-5) variety is the sole use of this obverse die on a Flowing Hair half dollar -- an interesting fact, since the variety is only known with a perfect obverse and shows no signs of the die's early demise. Nor did the reverse die fail during the O-107 marriage, because it appears on two subsequent 1794 marriages. The position of Star 1 is diagnostic, where the point of the star touches the first curl, but does not overlap it or extend beyond the curl. In total, six obverse dies were employed when striking 11 known die marriages that comprise the small mintage of 1794 half dollars, the first year of both the denomination and the Flowing Hair design.
Attractive gunmetal-gray fields contrast with light, silver-gray raised devices for a pleasing "circulation cameo" appearance. The obverse is smooth and appealing for the grade, despite moderate adjustment marks that angle downward across the hair recess near the ear. The similarly toned reverse shows a minor edge bump above ES of STATES and a short scrape at the eagle's left leg above the talon. Overall, the coin is well-defined for the Choice Fine grade. All 1794 half dollars are scarce and in-demand and this important O-107 is a prize for any variety collector. It clearly ranks in the Condition Census for the die pair, tied with one other example for fifth in the Tompkins reference listed as 25, 20, 20, 20, 15, 15, 12. We note that the Census does not include the outstanding O-107 we sold in the April, 2017 Central States Platinum Night event graded XF45 NGC as lot 4041, which brought $42,300 from the Terry Brand Estate.
HID02901242017